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  3. Mineral Resource Data System (MRDS)

Sullivan Mine

Past Producer in Nye county in Nevada, United States with commodities Gold, Silver, Copper
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Materials information
  8. Alteration
  9. Mineral occurrence model information
  10. Host and associated rocks
  11. Nearby scientific data
  12. Geologic structures
  13. Ore body information
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Ownership information
  18. Reserves and resources
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10310360
MRDS ID M231587
Record type Deposit
Current site name Sullivan Mine
Alternate or previous names Delaware Mine, Cuervo Property, Cuervo Gold, Inc. Mine
Related records 10222626

Comments on the site identification

  • This mine area encompasses the ground described in earlier MRDS record M231587 and adjacent areas.

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Geographic coordinates: Elevation UTM Precision Relative position Point location
-117.94788, 38.78186 (WGS84) 1590 The Sullivan Mine is located about 13 km south of Gabbs on the west side of the Paradise Range, 4 km SE of Kellys Wells. Paradise Peak deposit is located 4 km to the SSW of the Sullivan mine.
(click for info)
-117.9515, 38.78159 (WGS84) 1590

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Nye(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Gabbs(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Ione Valley(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Tonopah(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Gabbs Valley(hydrologic unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management NV)

Bureau of Land Management NV BLM(Type of land area)

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Nye

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 011N 036E 29 32 Nevada

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Primary
Copper Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Ore Materials: Native gold, copper minerals
  • Gangue Materials: iron oxides after pyrite

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification of host rocks.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 53
USGS model code 17
Deposit model name Porphyry Cu
Mark3 model number 4
Model code 105
USGS model code 25a-d
Deposit model name Epithermal vein, generic
Mark3 model number 119

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Quartz Monzonite
    Rock type qualifier porphyry
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Porphyry
    Rock type qualifier quartz monzonite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metavolcanic Rock
    Rock unit name Pamlico Formation(?)
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Triassic
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock
    Rock type qualifier fine-grained clastic
    Rock unit name Pamlico Formation(?)
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Triassic

Nearby scientific data

(1) -117.94788, 38.78186
ListMap
(2) -117.9515, 38.78159
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description faults

Ore body information

  • General form tabular to blanket

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface-Underground
Development status Past Producer
Deposit size Small
Significant Yes
Year of first production 1996
Year of last production 1998
Production years 1996-1998

Mining district

District name Fairplay District

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area
Area name Tonopah BLM District

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Arimetco International, Inc.
    Year 1999

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1995
    Reserves 17000000mt ore
    Demonstrated 8000000mt ore
    Total resources 25000000mt ore
    Remarks .0255 oz/ton Au
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper 0.33 wt-pct Copper Primary 1995
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1988
    Proved 10800000mt ore
    Probable 2700000mt ore
    Reserves 13500000mt ore
    Remarks .025 oz/ton Au
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1987
    Reserves 10200000mt ore
    Remarks .039 oz/ton Au\n.086 oz/ton Ag
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper 0.37 wt-pct Copper Primary 1987

Comments on the workings information

  • Early work consisted of a 60-ft inclined shaft with "dog-holes" off the shaft, made by lessees. More recent activity has been by open pit-heap leach methods.

Comments on other economic factors

  • In 1987 reserves were reported as: 10.2 million tons of ore grading 0.039 opt gold, 0.086 opt silver and 0.37% copper. In 1988: proven reserves of 10.8 million tons, plus probable reserves of 2.7 million tons grading 0.025 opt gold. In 1995, proven and possible were 17 million tons grading 0.34% copper, 0.0255 opt gold plus 8.5 million tons grading 0.32% copper.

Comments on development

  • Sullivan was an early gold mine or prospect in the Fairplay District with an unknown amount of production. It had sporadic activity and was owned by Nevada Co. of Reno in 1951.
    In 1987, Glamis Gold Ltd., announced a reserve of about 10 million tons of ore grading 0.039 ounces of gold per ton, 0.086 ounces of silver per ton, and 0.37 % copper. Glamis? attempts to operate the mine profitably were unsuccessful.
    In 1995, Arimetco International acquired the Sullivan property and adjacent claims from Omega Resources and concluded the purchase of the nearby Paradise Peak operation from FMC Gold. Paradise Peak's main asset was its gold processing plant, with nearly all operating permits active. Arimetco planned to use the facility to process residual gold ore at Paradise Peak as well as gold-copper ore from the Sullivan orebody, 2.3 miles away. The Sullivan deposit contained at that time proven and probable reserves of 17 million tons of oxide ore grading 0.34% copper and 0.0255 opt gold, plus another 8.5 million tons grading 0.32% copper. At least another 2 million tons of ore at similar grades was possible. Arimetco began mining and leaching of residual ores located on the Paradise Peak property in 1996, with plans to treat the Sullivan mine ore in 1997. The plan at that time was to mine 70,000 tons of ore per week from Sullivan to be processed at Paradise Peak, producing 18 million pounds of cathode copper and 70,000 oz of gold per year, in addition to heap-leach gold production at Paradise Peak. Arimetco declared bankruptcy in 1999 and no production from the Sullivan mine was recorded. The mine has remained idle since that time.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
General *****SEE related deposits: Paradise Peak Mine-Deposit ID 10310352
Paradise Peak/Ketchup Flats-Deposit ID 10198457
Deposit Earlier mined deposits were epithermal quartz veins, stringers, and pods. The more recently mined deposit is a porphyry copper deposit. Ore is contained in vein stockworks hosted by Cretaceous quartz monzonite porphyry that intrudes Triassic metamorphosed volcanic rocks and fine-grained clastic sedimentary rock.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-AUG-2006 LaPointe, D.D. Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Editor 01-SEP-2007 Schruben, Paul G. U.S. Geological Survey Converted from S&A FileMaker format to Oracle. Edit checks on rocks, units, and ages with Geolex search, and other fields.

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Nevada resources

These are landing pages for further research — the state agencies don't currently expose per-mine deep links.