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Corocoro District

Producer in La Paz, Bolivia with commodities Copper, Silver, Lead, Zinc
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Ownership information
  18. Production statistics
  19. Reserves and resources
  20. Workings at the site
  21. Links to other databases
  22. Bibliographic references
  23. General comments
  24. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10068795
MRDS ID W002046
Record type Site
Current site name Corocoro District
Alternate or previous names Mines: Buen Pastos, Capilla, Challcoma, Copacabana, Estrella, Guallatiri, Libertad, Malcocoya, Remedios, San Angel, San Augustin, San Geronimo, Santa Rita, Santa Rosa, Tancani, Viscachani, Yanabarra

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -68.45063, -17.16685 (WGS84)
Elevation 4050
Relative position 130 KM SW OF LA PAZ AND 340 KM FROM PORT OF ARICA, CHILE, BY RR.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

La Paz(province)

Bolivia(country)

South America(continent)

Land(continent)

Federal lands

Federal(land status)

Geographic areas

Country State
Bolivia La Paz

Comments on the location information

  • LAT LONG IS FOR TOLEDO SHAFT IN APPROXIMATE CENTER OF DISTRICT ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE TOWN OF COROCORO.; PREVIOUS QUAD DESIGNATION = COROCORO (SE 19-7) 1:250000

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Silver Secondary
Lead Tertiary
Zinc Critical Tertiary

Comments on the commodity information

  • CONCENTRATES CARRY SIGNIFICANT CONCENTRATIONS OF PB, ZN, SB, AS, FE, S, AND SI.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Atacamite Ore
Bornite Ore
Chalcanthite Ore
Chalcocite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Chrysocolla Ore
Conichalcite Ore
Copper Ore
Covellite Ore
Cuprite Ore
Galena Ore
Malachite Ore
Silver Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Stromeyerite Ore
Tennantite Ore
Tenorite Ore
Alunite Gangue
Anhydrite Gangue
Aragonite Gangue
Barite Gangue
Celestite Gangue
Chalcedony Gangue
Dioptase Gangue
Gypsum Gangue
Halite Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Kaolinite Gangue
Montmorillonite Gangue
Nontronite Gangue
Olivine Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Selenite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Some Bleaching Around Ore In Older Ramos Beds But None Around Ore Bodies In Vetas Beds. Ore Is Oxidized To 60 M Depth.

Analytical data

Result TRACE ELEMENT STUDIES SHOW VETAS AND RAMOS ORE TO BE VERY SIMILAR
Result ABOUT 15 G/T AG PER 1% CU GRADE. PB VALUES AS HIGH AS 15% BUT AVERAGE 2.04%. AG GRADES UP TO 184 G/T AG BUT AVERAGE 28.85 G/T.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 197
USGS model code 30b
Deposit model name Sediment-hosted Cu
Mark3 model number 63

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Shale
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Oligocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Conglomerate
    Rock unit name Ballivian;Caquiaviri
    Rock description Ballivian;Caquiaviri

Nearby scientific data

(1) -68.45063, -17.16685
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Corocoro Fault, Trending N 10 Deg W And Dipping Nearly Vertical, Separates Parallel Vetas Beds From Ramos Bed With About 100 M Displacement. Gaullatiri Thrust Fault Cuts All.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Faulted Anticline, Perhaps Related To Gypsum Diapirism

Ore body information

  • General form LENTICULAR
    Strike N 20 W
    Dip 65 SW TO 70 NE
    Plunge 40
    Plunge direction S
    Thickness 70M
    Length 4000M
    Width 15M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 650M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Preferred Beds In Cuvette Depressions On Flanks Of Anticlines

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No
Discovery year 1540
Discoverer Native Americans
Year of last production 1986

Mining district

District name Corocoro Copper District

Land status

Ownership category Federal

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Closed
  • Type Owner
    Owner Corp. Mineria De Bolivia

Production statistics

  • Year 1935
    Period Thru 1935
    Material CU
    Description Cp_Grade: ^3.71% Cu
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Copper Copper 4wt-pct
  • Year 1952
    Period 1949-1952
    Material SULFIDE ORE
    Description Cp_Grade: ^9.11% Cu
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Copper Copper 9wt-pct
  • Year 1971
    Period Thru 1971
    Material CU
    Description Cp_Grade: ^2.41% Cu
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Copper Copper 2wt-pct

Comments on the production information

  • ITEMS 9, 10, 11 PERS. COMM. FROM LAWSON ENTWISTLE

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1960
    Total resources 12000000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 3.4 wt-pct Copper Major 1960
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1971
    Total resources 427038000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 4.11 wt-pct Copper Major 1971
  • Type Dump
    Estimate year 1971
    Total resources 156581000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.9 wt-pct Copper Major 1971
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1971
    Total resources 5570329000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 3.17 wt-pct Copper Major 1971
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1952
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 3.68 wt-pct Copper Major 1952

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • TIVINA-EUREKA SECTION RESERVES EXCEPT ITEM 6 SAN MARCOS/DOLORES VEINS, PERS COMM LAWSON ENTWISTLE

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 4000M
    Overall depth 650M

Comments on development

  • NATIVE COPPER WORKED BY INCAS AND SPANISH COLONISTS TO 1781. CU SULFIDES MINES FROM 1830. THE CHILEAN CIA. COROCORO DE BOLIVIA WORKED COROCORO FROM 1873 AND THE ANGLO-FRENCH COROCORO UNITED MINES LTD. WORKED COROCORO FROM 1909 TO 1918 WHEN THE TWO FIRMS COMBINED. NOT WORKED 1930-32. PURCHASED BY ASARCO IN 1934, ACQUIRED ALL OF DISTRICT BY 1947. NATIONALIZED 1952 AS PART OF COMIBOL. ; MILL.CAP: 230 ; ECON.COM: TOLEDO MINE AREA MINED SINCE 1940. TANCANI-LIBERTAD MINES HAVE BEEN ABANDONED FOR A LONG TIME. BUEN PASTOS MINE WORKED FOR AG 1840-1860

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit SHALLOW PB-ZN-AG DEPOSIT AT BUEN PASTOS MINE WAS WORKED FROM 1840-1860 YIELDING ABOUT 25 MT/Y AG. VETAS ORE CONSISTS OF CHALCOCITE CEMENT IN ARKOSIC SANDSTONE, CHALCOCITE REPLACEMENT OF FOSSIL PLANTS, AND POCKETS CEMENTED BY GALENA AND SPHALERITE. RAMOS ORES CONSIST OF NATIVE CU FILLING PORES IN SANDSTONE, FRACTURES IN SANDSTONE AND SHALE, REPLACEMENT OF FOSSIL WOOD, AND REPLACEMENT OF ARAGONITE CEMENT IN SANDSTONE. RAMOS ORE WAS OXIDIZED ABOVE THE WATER TABLE TO AZURITE, MALACHITE, AND CUPRITE.
Deposit OPERATIONS WERE REPORTED SUSPENDED IN JAN, 1987. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAY-1973 Irving U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-JUN-1978 Earl M. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-OCT-1989 Urquidi-Barrau, Fernando (Long, Keith R.) U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

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