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El Abra

Past Producer in Chile with commodities Copper, Molybdenum
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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. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Ownership information
  15. Reserves and resources
  16. Links to other databases
  17. Bibliographic references
  18. General comments
  19. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10099525
MRDS ID TC40328
Record type Site
Current site name El Abra
Alternate or previous names Maria Vein, Ojo De Gallo, Conchi, Viejo Mine Are Mines In Same Area. Oja Del Gallo Mine.
Related records 10157931

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -68.82618, -21.91422 (WGS84)
Elevation 4005
Relative position 47 KM NORTH OF CHUQUICAMATA.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Chile(country)

South America(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country
Chile

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Molybdenum Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Antlerite Ore
Atacamite Ore
Bornite Ore
Brochantite Ore
Chalcocite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Chrysocolla Ore
Copper Ore
Cuprite Ore
Digenite Ore
Enargite Ore
Galena Ore
Molybdenite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Tennantite Ore
Tenorite Ore
Limonite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Tourmaline Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Potassic, K-Spar And Biotite; Phyllic, Sericite And Quartz Widespread, Sericite And Kaolinite And Pyrophyllite And Quartz; Propylitic, Poorly Outside Developed Ring; Tourmalinization, Small Irregular Breccias Are Erratically Distributed In The El Abra Diorite And Outside Immediate Area; Supergene Alteration To Depths Of 30 Dm, Kaolinite, Montmorillonite, Zeolites.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 53
USGS model code 17
Deposit model name Porphyry Cu
Mark3 model number 4

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock unit name Mesa Granite;East Side Granite;Pajonal Diorite
    Rock description Mesa Granite;East Side Granite;Pajonal Diorite
    Chronological age 35.9
    Dating method K-Ar
    Type of media Biotite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Dacite
    Rock unit name Southern Granodiorite, El Abra Pluton;El Abra Diorite;El Abra Quartz Monzonite;El Abra Pluton;
    Rock description Southern Granodiorite, El Abra Pluton;El Abra Diorite;El Abra Quartz Monzonite;El Abra Pluton;

Nearby scientific data

(1) -68.82618, -21.91422
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Falla Oeste (Ns-Trending).

Ore body information

  • Strike }120 DEG
    Dip }70-90 NE
    Length 1200M
    Width 900M
    Depth to bottom 900M

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant No
Discovery year 1540

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Codelco
    Interest 49
    First year 1994
  • Type Owner
    Owner Lac Minerals/ Cyprus
    Interest 51
    First year 1994
  • Type Operator
    Owner British Compania Mineria De Calama
    First year 1900
    Last year 1925
  • Type Operator
    Owner Chile Exploration Co., Subsidary Of Anaconda
    First year 1925
    Last year 1971
  • Type Operator
    Owner Chilean Government, Codelco-Chile
    First year 1971
    Last year 1992
  • Type Operator
    Owner Lac Minerals
    First year 1993

Comments on the production information

  • ORE IS HIGH-GRADE SILICEOUS COPPER ORE SHIPPED AS FLUX; ABOUT 1 MILLION TONS OF MATERIAL REMOVED IN OJO DE GALLO MINE AREA. PROSPECT, UNKNOWN ACTIVITY.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1979
    Demonstrated 89000000mt ore
    Inferred 43000000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.98 wt-pct Copper Major 1979
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1982
    Total resources 16000000000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.62 wt-pct Copper Major 1982
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1993
    Total resources 303854000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.66 wt-pct Copper Major 1993
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1957
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.6 wt-pct Copper Major 1957
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1957
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 1 wt-pct Copper Major 1957
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1992
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.63 wt-pct Copper Major 1992
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1978
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.74 wt-pct Copper Major 1978

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • 1993 IS RESOURCE ESTIMATE FOR LOW GRADE CHALCOPYRITE-PYRITE MINERALIZATION.
  • ORE (1) AND ORE (2) 0.3% CU CUT OFF GRADE. ORE (2) IS PART OF ORE (1). SUTULOV 1975 STATED ABOUT 700,000,000 MET TONS ORE, WITH AN AVERAGE GRADE ABOUT 1% CU OF THE ABOVE 1.2 BILLION ST OF RESERVES, 440 MILLION ST IS OXIDE ORE AND 789 MILLION ST IS SULFIDE ORE.

Comments on development

  • SURFACE EXPLORATION PROGRAMS BETWEEN 1945-1965 LED TO DRILLING 7 HOLES (1965-1968); THESE PROVED A PRIMARY DEPOSIT. 1957-1970 ABOUT 100,000 TONS WERE SHIPPED AS FLUX. 1972 CHUQUICAMATA'S GEOLOGIC DIVISION BEGAN NEW DRILLING PROGRAM OF 3300 M OF DIAMOND DRILLING AND 1500 M OF TUNNELS AND SHAFTS AND COMPLETED IT IN MID-1975. STRIPPING RATIO IS LESS THAN 0.5:1 FOR THE OXIDE ORE BODY.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    AMBRUS, J., 1977, GEOLOGY OF THE EL ABRA PORPHYRY COPPER DEPOSIT, CHILE: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY, V. 72, NO. 6, P. 1062-1085.

  • Deposit

    RUIZ FULLER, CARLOS, 1965, GEOLOGIA Y YACIMIENTOS METALIFEROS DE CHILE, ED. INSTITUTO DES INVESTIGACIONES GEOLOGICAS DE CHILE, EDITORIAL UNIVERSITARIA S.A.

  • Deposit

    SUTULOV, ET. AL., 1965, EL COBRE CHILENO, ED. CORPORACION DEL COBRE EDITORIAL UNIVERSITARIA 1975.

  • Deposit

    FRUTOS, J. AND PINCHEIRA, M., 1986, FINCHAS METALOGENICAS DE YACIMIENTOS MINERALES METALICOS CHILENOS, IN FRUTOS, J., OYARZUN, J., AND PINCHEIRA, M., EDS., GEOLOGIA Y RECURSOS MINERALES CHILENOS: UNIVERSIDAD DE CONCEPCION, CONCEPCION, P. 841-888.

  • Deposit

    RUIZ, C. AND PEEBLES, F., 1988, YACIMIENTOS METALIFEROS DE CHILE: SANTIAGO, 334 P.

  • Deposit

    BORIC, R., DIAZ, F., AND MAKSAEV, V., 1984, COMPLEMENTO MAPA METALOGENICO, II REGION: GERENCIA DE DESARROLLO, SANTIAGO (12 VOLS).

  • Deposit

    IIG, 1974, INDEITO #406 & 1890.

  • Deposit

    ALVAREZ, O., Y ARACENA, I., 1982, EL ABRA, UNO DE LOS GRANDES YACIMIENTOS DE COBRE AUN NO EXPLOTADAS: REVISTA MINERALES, 37, P. 25-35.

  • Deposit

    LITTLE, M.L., 1993, EXPLORATION REVIEW: SOUTH AMERICA: SEG NEWSLETTER, V. 15, OCTOBER 1993, P. 14.

  • Deposit

    SILLITOE, R.H., 1988, EPOCHS OF INTRUSION-RELATED COPPER MINERALIZATION IN THE ANDES: JOUR. S. AM. EARTH SCI., 1, P. 89-108.

  • Deposit

    LASOTA, P.S., 1992, OPEN-PIT MINING IN CHILE: MINING ENGINEERING, APRIL 1992, P. 307-310.

  • Deposit

    LITTLE, M.L., 1994, EXPLORATION REVIEW: SOUTH AMERICA: SEG NEWSLETTER, NO. 16, JANUARY '94, P. 17.

  • Other Database

    CIMRI

  • Production

    AMBRUS (1977).

  • Reserve-Resource

    AMBRUS, 1979; ALVAREZ & ARACENA (1982). LITTLE (1993).

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit DEPTH TO HYPOGENE MINERALIZATION VARIES FROM 45 TO 330 M. OXIDIC ZONE DOWN TO 50 TO 200 M; NS ELLIPTICAL INTRUSION; MINERALIZATION CONTROLLED BY W-NW FRACTURES, OXIDIZED ZONE COVERS AN AREA OF ONE SQ KM AND VARIES FROM 300 M TO 500 M DEEP; NO STRONG SUPERGENE-ENRICHED ZONE.
Deposit W029811 HAS BEEN COMBINED WITH THIS RECORD AND DELETED.
Deposit Discovery Year: PRE-SPANISH, INCA

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-1993 Page, Norman J. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-AUG-1978 Theune, C.T. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-JAN-1990 Williams, William C. University of Arizona
Updater 01-APR-1992 Bolm, Karen S. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-AUG-1994 Page, Norman J. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

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