New South Wales is host to a diverse range of gold deposit types, with gold being produced as either the principal commo
Au
Gold Opportunities in New South Wales, Australia JU LY 2 0 17
QUEENSLAND
Drake/Mt Carrington
Lightning Ridge
Tibooburra
Yamba Grafton
SOUTH
Inverell
Walgett Narrabri
Delamerian Orogen
AU S T R A L I A
The Peak
Nyngan
Broken Hill
Hera
Cowal
Muswellbrook
Commonwealth Mine
Griffith
NEWCASTLE
Copper Hill
Cadia Discovery Ridge
Wentworth
BATHURST
McPhillamys
SYDNEY
Gidginbung
Balranald
Temora Mt Adrah CANBERRA A.C.T.
Deniliquin
Woodlawn
NOWRA
Dargues Reef
Batemans Bay
Bendigo Zone
VICTORIA
ALBURY
Cooma
Narooma Bega Eden
Overview • New South Wales (NSW) has a gold endowment (past production and identified resources) exceeding 3252 tonnes (t) / 104 million ounces (Moz).
REFERENCE
Au occurrence 0.5 to 10 t Au* 10 to 50 t Au* >50 t Au* Cadia Operating mine Project Temora Export port Railway Major road, sealed Major road, unsealed Gas pipeline * Total contained commodity
WOLLONGONG
Goulburn WAGGA WAGGA
200 km
Taree
DUBBO
Lachlan Orogen
Stawell Zone
N
PORT MACQUARIE
Tomingley Mineral Hill Sorpresa Northparkes
Murray Basin
Hillgrove
New England Kempsey Orogen
TAMWORTH
Mt Boppy
Cobar
COFFS HARBOUR
Armidale
Coonamble
To Adelaide
Ballina
Moree
Thomson Orogen Bourke
Curnamona Craton
LISMORE
These gold-rich systems include: • Porphyry Cu–Au (Cadia, Northparkes, Copper Hill, Temora district) and granite-related gold (GRG) (Mt Adrah and Dargues Reef) deposits
• Gold production is sourced from a variety of mineral deposit types.
• Orogenic Au (McPhillamys, Hillgrove, Tomingley) and orogenic base-metal deposits including Cobar-type Au–Cu deposits (The Peak and Hera)
• The state remains under-explored, with a range of opportunities for new discoveries.
• High, intermediate and low sulfidation epithermal Au systems (Gidginbung, Mineral Hill, Drake)
Deposit types
• Gold-rich volcanic associated massive sulfide (VAMS) deposits such as Woodlawn
New South Wales is host to a diverse range of gold deposit types, with gold being produced as either the principal commodity (e.g. Cadia, Cowal) or as a by-product (e.g. Northparkes).
• Significant gold in some Broken Hill-type base metal systems within the Curnamona Craton. Gold has also been mined from a diverse range of modern and ancient placer, eluvial and beach deposits and a host of other deposit types where it occurs as a minor commodity.
www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au
Prospective terranes
Gold endowment (past production + resources) for NSW, classified by deposit type
Lachlan Orogen The mainly Ordovician to Carboniferous Lachlan Orogen is generally poorly explored for gold. Recent discoveries (Tomingley, McPhillamys, Hera) highlight the prospectivity of these provinces. Important prospective areas include:
Total endowment >3252 t / 104.6 Moz Current resources >2244 t / 72.1 Moz 4.2%
8.1%
2.0%
1.8%
• The Macquarie Arc — several belts of volcanic-dominated rocks of Ordovician to Early Silurian which host approximately 59 Moz of gold including the world class Cadia deposits
2.0%
18.6%
• Silurian to Early Devonian rift basins (Hill End Trough, Goulburn Basin, Cobar Basin) • The Gilmore Fault Zone (a major crustal structure) • The Early Devonian Braidwood Granodiorite.
New England Orogen The Devonian to Triassic New England Orogen is under-explored by Australian standards. The orogen is host to the Hillgrove orogenic Au–Sb deposit, the Drake epithermal system and the Timbarra and Uralla GRG goldfields.
5.6%
Other areas
57.7%
The Stawell and Bendigo zones, which host major gold vein systems in Victoria, are interpreted to extend into southwestern NSW. Similarly, the poorly exposed and poorly understood Thomson Orogen, which extends southwards from Queensland into northwestern NSW, has been little explored. Other areas where little exploration has been done include the Neoproterozoic to early Palaeozoic Koonenberry Belt, which is now interpreted to be a Cambrian arc built on the rifted margin of Gondwana and the northern extension of the Lachlan Orogen, where it is covered by younger sequences.
Epithermal
Orogenic base metal
Skarn
Porphyry
VAMS
Granite-related
Orogenic Au
Alluvial/eluvial
Gold production in New South Wales (1987–2016) 40 35 30
20 15 10 5
Financial year (ending 30 June)
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
0 1987
Tonnes
25
Summary of significant gold resources within NSW Mine name Deposit type
Contained Contained gold (kg) gold (Koz)
Current resources and reserves (JORC)
M I N E S
Cadia Valley Operations Cadia East: (probable) 1500 Mt @ 0.48 g/t Au, 0.28 % Cu Porphyry Au-Cu Cadia East: (global resource) 3000 Mt @ 0.38 g/t Au, 0.26% Cu
1 140 000
36 651
156 332
5026
11 110
357
Cowal Orogenic Au
(proved & probable) 116.71 Mt @ 0.85 g/t Au (global resource) 177.65 Mt @ 0.88 g/t Au
Hera Orogenic base metal
(probable) 0.979 Mt @ 5.11 g/t Au, 16.3 g/t Ag, 2.84% Pb, 3.85% Zn (global resource) 2.698 Mt @ 4.12 g/t Au, 34 g/t Ag, 3.67% Pb, 4.86% Zn
Northparkes Porphyry Au–Cu
(proved & probable) 102.28 Mt @ 0.6% Cu, 0.26 g/t Au, 2.21 g/t Ag (global resource) 497.86 Mt @ 0.56% Cu, 0.18 g/t Au, 1.75 g/t Ag
89 614
2881
The Peak Orogenic base metal
(proved & probable) 2.87 Mt @ 2.89 g/t Au, 6.9 g/t Ag, 1.29% Cu (measured & indicated) 4.1 Mt @ 3.37 g/t Au, 7.5 g/t Ag, 1.04% Cu (inferred) 2 Mt @ 3.14 g/t Au, 10.9 g/t Ag, 1.13% Cu
20 097
646
Tomingley Orogenic Au
Tomingley open pit: (proved & probable) 3.788 Mt @ 1.5 g/t Au Tomingley underground: (proved & probable) 524 400 t @ 3.7 g/t Au (global resource) 10.324 Mt @ 1.8 g/t Au
18 583
598
76 500
2460
133 300
4286
2016
65
27 840
895
10 181
327
16 800
540
1132
358
Project name Deposit type Cadia Valley Operations Ridgeway: (probable) 82 Mt @ 0.54 g/t Au, 0.28% Cu (care and maintenance) Porphyry Au-Cu Ridgeway: (global resource) 150 Mt @ 0.51 g/t Au, 0.33% Cu
P R O J E C T S
Other (Cadia Hill etc.): (proved & probable) 90 Mt @ 0.5 g/t Au, 0.14% Cu Other (Cadia Hill etc.): (global resource) 310 Mt @ 0.43 g/t Au, 0.16% Cu Commonwealth VAMS
(inferred) 0.72 Mt @ 2.8 g/t Au, 48 g/t Ag, 1.5% Zn, 0.6% Pb, 0.1% Cu
Copper Hill Porphyry Cu–Au
(indicated & inferred) 87 Mt @ 0.36% Cu, 0.32 g/t Au
Dargues Reef Granite-related Au
(global resource) 1.616 Mt @ 6.3 g/t Au
Discovery Ridge Orogenic Au
(global resource) 14 Mt @ 1.2 g/t Au
Drake Epithermal
Mt Carrington (gold-rich zones): (indicated & inferred) 6.64 Mt @ 1.3 g/t Au, 3.0 g/t Ag Mt Carrington (silver-rich zones): (indicated & inferred) 12.5 Mt @ 57 g/t Ag, 0.2 g/t Au
Gidginbung Epithermal
(indicated & inferred) 23.8 Mt @ 1.0 g/t Au, 2.7 g/t Ag, 0.1% Cu
23 800
765
Hillgrove Orogenic Au
(proved & probable) 2.195 Mt @ 3.8 g/t Au, 2.1% Sb (global resource) 6.349 Mt @ 4.3 g/t Au, 1.6% Sb
27 301
878
McPhillamys Orogenic Au
(indicated & inferred) 91.94 Mt @ 1.00 g/t Au, 0.07% Cu
91 940
2956
Mineral Hill Epithermal
Pearse (oxide & sulfide): (proved & probable) 0.235 Mt @ 6.9 g/t Au, 71.7 g/t Ag Pearse (oxide & sulfide): (measured & indicated) 0.298 Mt @ 6.9 g/t Au, 80 g/t Ag
2056
66
805
26
2633
85
22 550
725
Pearse North: (proved & probable) 0.179 Mt @ 2.5 g/t Au, 21 g/t Ag Pearse North: (global resource) 0.298 Mt @ 2.7 g/t Au, 26 g/t Ag Southern Ore Zone (H Lode): (Global resource) 0.104 Mt @ 1.0% Cu, 0.02% Pb, 0.01% Zn, 1.8 g/t Au, 4 g/t Ag Southern Ore Zone (G Lode): (Global resource) 0.339 Mt @ 1.3% Cu, 0.02% Pb, 0.03% Zn, 2.1 g/t Au, 4 g/t Ag Southern Ore Zone (A Lode): (Global resource) 0.523 Mt @ 3% Zn, 3.6% Pb, 0.9% Cu, 1.3 g/t Au, 37 g/t Ag Red Terror: (global resource) 0.186 Mt @ 1.7% Cu, 0.1% Pb, 0.3% Zn, 2.2 g/t Ag, 2.4 g/t Au Mt Adrah Granite-related Au
(indicated & inferred) 20.5 Mt @ 1.1 g/t Au
Mt Boppy (care and maintenance) Orogenic Au
(proved & probable) 0.463 Mt @ 3.2 g/t Au
1482
48
Sorpresa Epithermal
(indicated & inferred) 6.4 Mt @ 0.61 g/t Au, 38 g/t Ag
3940
127
Table continued on back.
www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au
Project name Deposit type
Contained Contained gold (kg) gold (Koz)
Current resources and reserves (JORC)
P R O J E C T S
Temora porphyry district (indicated & inferred) 279 Mt @ 0.3% Cu, 0.2 g/t Au Porphyry Au–Cu Woodlawn VAMS
Underground: (probable) 2.8 Mt @ 5.5% Zn, 1.6% Cu, 1.9% Pb, 0.45 g/t Au, 42 g/t Ag Underground: (measured & indicated) 4.1 Mt @ 7.2% Zn, 2.0% Cu, 2.6% Pb, 0.52 g/t Au, 55 g/t Ag Underground: (inferred) 2.5 Mt @ 5.9% Zn, 1.8% Cu, 2.3% Pb, 0.61 g/t Au, 47 g/t Ag Reclaimed tailings: (proved & probable) 9.5 Mt @ 2.2% Zn, 0.5% Cu, 1.3% Pb, 0.31 g/t Au, 31 g/t Ag Reclaimed tailings: (measured & indicated) 9.8 Mt @ 2.3% Zn, 0.51% Cu, 1.3% Pb, 0.31 g/t Au, 32 g/t Ag Reclaimed tailings: (inferred) 1.1 Mt @ 2.3% Zn, 0.47% Cu, 1.2% Pb, 0.25 g/t Au, 27 g/t Ag
55 800
1794
6970
224
Top: Wetlands near Cowal gold mine. Bottom left: Free gold in drillcore from Cadia East. Bottom right: Copper gold ore with quartz veins, chalcopyrite and bornite from underground at Ridgeway mine near Cadia.
Further information The Advanced Mineral Projects & Exploration Highlights in NSW Map summarises recent exploration activities and ore reserve/ resource announcements. This map is updated every six months and is available at www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au
Contact: mra.info@industry.nsw.gov.au | +61 2 4931 6689 Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding at time of writing (July 2017), using publicly available information. Because of advances in knowledge, users are reminded of the need to ensure that information upon which they rely is up to date. The information contained in this publication may not be or may no longer be aligned with government policy nor does the publication indicate or imply government policy. No warranty about the accuracy, currency or completeness of any information contained in this document is inferred (including, without limitation, any information in the document provided by third parties). While all reasonable care has been taken in the compilation, to the extent permitted by law, the State of New South Wales (including the NSW Department of Planning and Environment) exclude all liability for the accuracy or completeness of the information, or for any injury, loss, or damage whatsoever (including without limitation liability for negligence and consequential losses) suffered by any person acting, or purporting to act, in reliance upon anything contained herein. Users should rely upon their own advice, skills, interpretation and experience in applying information contained in this publication. The product trade names in this publication are supplied on the understanding that no preference between equivalent products is intended and that the inclusion of a product name does not imply endorsement by the Department over any equivalent product.
