Greenvale Nickel Laterite Mine

Past Producer in Queensland, Australia with commodities Cobalt, Nickel
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Nearby scientific data
  8. Ore body information
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Ownership information
  11. Production statistics
  12. Reserves and resources
  13. Workings at the site
  14. Links to other databases
  15. Bibliographic references
  16. General comments
  17. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10134154
MAS/MILS ID 6020350010
Record type Site
Current site name Greenvale Nickel Laterite Mine
Alternate or previous names Greenvale, Queensland Mines

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: 145.0988, -18.96359 (WGS84)
Elevation 500
Location accuracy 10(meters)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Queensland(province)

Australia(country)

Australia(continent)

Land(continent)

Geographic areas

Country State
Australia Queensland

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Cobalt Critical Secondary
Nickel Critical Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcedony Unknown
Limonite Unknown
Serpentine Unknown

Nearby scientific data

(1) 145.0988, -18.96359

Economic information

Ore body information

  • Thickness 8M
    Length 1800M
    Width 1800M
    Field Value
    MAS Matrix # 1
    MAS Column # 3
    Type of Orebody #1 OTHER
    Shape of Orebody #1 TABULAR
    Shape of Orebody #2 IRREGULAR
    Primary mode of Origin RESIDUAL CONCENT
    Secondary mode of Origin SEDIMENTATION
    Primary Ore Control LITHOLOGY
    Secondary Ore Control FRACTURING
    Degree of Wallrock Alter. NONE
    Type of Wallrock Alter. #1 UNKNOWN
    Avg. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. 11.5
    Min. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. 1
    Date of Last Modification 830712
  • Area 3500HA
    Field Value
    Total Surface Area (HA) 3500
    Date of Last Modification 910418

Comments on the geologic information

  • PRINCIPAL NICKEL MINERAL IS NICKEL SERPENTINE; THE COBALT IS ABSORBED ONTO MANGANESE OXIDES.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Significant Yes
Mining method Strip-Level
Year of first production 1974
Milling method Pyrometallurgy Unspecified

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Queensland Government
    Interest 28
    Home office Australia
    Year 1991
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Dallhold Nickel Management
    Interest 72
    Home office Australia
    Year 1991

Production statistics

  • Year 1990
    Description Contained Tonnes/Year Nickel 23000 Metric Tonnes/ Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Nickel Nickel 23000mt
  • Year 1991
    Description Projected Contained Tonnes/ Year Ni 23000 Metric Tonnes/ Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Nickel Nickel 23000mt

Comments on the production information

  • COBALT PRODUCT IS EXPRESSED AS PURE COBALT BASED ON INPUT GRADE AND COBALT RECOVERY. COBALT HAD RECENTLY BEEN SHIPPED TO FINLAND IN THE FORM OF MIXED SULFIDES, BUT IT IS NOW LIKELY THAT YABULU IS UPGRADING IN ORDER TO REFINE COBALT.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1991
    Indicated 8000000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Nickel Ni 1.21 wt-pct Nickel Major 1991
    Cobalt Co 0.09 wt-pct Cobalt Minor 1991
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1993
    Demonstrated 920000mt ore
    Total resources 920000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Nickel Ni 1.51 wt-pct Nickel Major 1993

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ALTHOUGH SOME LOW GRADE RESOURCES EXIST SOME DISTANCE FROM THE MINE, THE CURRENT RESOURCE ONLY HAS ABOUT 2 YEARS OF PRODUCTION LEFT (2/88) AS A RESULT, MINE WILL IMPORT LATERITE ORE. LOWER FEED BUT HIGHER GRADES = ABOUT SAME PRODUCTION OF NICKEL AND COBALT. AT THAT TIME THE OPERATION WILL BE CONSIDERED A PROCESSING FACILTIY.
  • M1C1=M9C4. SINCE THE QUEENSLAND MINES RESERVES ARE EXPECTED TO DRY OUT SOON, QUEENSLAND NICKEL IS IMPORTING ORE FROM NEW CALEDONIA AND INDONESIA. THIS MAY INCREASE CONTAINED NICKEL PRODUCTION CAPACITY BY 4000-9000 TONNES AT THE REFINERY LEVEL, DEPENDING ON THE GRADES AND RECOVERIES.
  • ONLY ONE-TWO YEARS OF MINES RESOURCE EXIST. FACILTY WILL RELY ON NI-CO ORES FROM NEW CALEDONIA, INDONESIA AND PHILIPPINES

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Area 3500HA
    Field Value
    MAS Development Schedule # 1
    Mining Record # 1
    Status of Mining Method ACTUAL
    Mining Method OPEN PIT
    Percent Waste Rock 41
    Avg. Overburden Thickness 5
    Primary Material Cover HARDPAN
    Hardness of Ore HARDPAN
    Avg. Bench Height (meters) 3
    Capacity 2677
    Capacity Units MT ORE/DAY
    Units of Production $/MT ORE
    Operating Days per Year 300
    Operating Shifts per Day 3
    Year of Information 1991

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Reserve-Resource

    AME MINERAL ECONOMICS QUARTERLY MINE ANALYSIS, JUNE, 1993,

  • Reserve-Resource

    P. 40.

  • Deposit

    INTERNATIONAL LATERITE SYMPOSIUM. 1979. PP. 24-37, 357-381.

  • Deposit

    MINERALS YEARBOOK. 1978-1979. P.636.

  • Deposit

    MINING ANNUAL REVIEW. 1978, P. 407; 1979, PP. 399-401;

  • Deposit

    1980, PP. 313-315, 426; 1981, P. 410

  • Deposit

    MINING AND METALLURGICAL PRACTICES IN AUSTRALIA. MONOGRAPH

  • Deposit

    SERIES NO. 10. 1980 PP. 556-558, PP. 585-590.

  • Deposit

    MINING MAGAZINE. DECEMBER 1973. PP. 504-512.

  • Deposit

    REGISTER OF AUSTRALIAN MINING. 1980. PP.97-98, 108.

  • Deposit

    NICKDATA, INC. A COMPREHENSIVE NICKEL INDUSTRY COST DATABASE

  • Deposit

    AND COSTING PROGRAM. 1991. ILMAR J. MARTENS,

  • Deposit

    THOMAS F. TORRIES.

  • Deposit

    FREEPORT MINERALS COMPANY. 1979 ANNUAL REPORT.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit AT THE MINE SITE THE ORE IS CRUSHED AND SCREENED. IT IS THEN STOCKPILED AND BLENDED. TRAINS HAUL THE ORE TO THE REFINERY AT YABULU. AN AMMONIA LEACH PROCESS IS USED TO RECOVER THE NICKEL AND COBALT. NICKEL CARBONATE IS PRO- DUCED FROM THE NICKEL ORE AND IS TREATED FURTHER TO PRODUCE SINTERED NICKEL OXIDE. A NICKEL-COLBALT SULFIDE IS RECOVERED FROM THE COBALT.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 10-MAR-97 Bleiwas, Donald U.S. Bureau of Mines

Beyond USGS

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