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A P R I L / M A Y 2 0 1 4
MININGWORLD
With gold prices moving up, exploration
companies are planning new field programs.
But are the exploration teams ready for
the exotic environment of tropical gold
prospects?
For the last few years, global gold explora
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tion trends have increasingly been focused
on West and Central Africa, Central and
northern South America, the South Pacific
and Southeast Asia. This is due in part to
these places ranking low for their green
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field-discovery costs, at less than US $25/oz
of gold found. The trend is also driven by
a string of high-quality, multi-million ounce
gold discoveries in emerging gold districts
of the tropics. Near-surface gold enrichment
and softened rock are what make gold depos
-
its in these climates desirable targets for the
gold-producing companies.
Between 2007 and 2012, about 125 million
ounces of gold were discovered at tropical
latitudes across 34 gold deposits. Examples
of significant gold deposits that made this
list include Toroparu, Guyana (Sandspring
Resources 2007); Kobada, Mali (Africa Gold
Group 2008); Buritica, Colombia (Continental
Gold 2010); Pueblo Viejo, Dominican
Republic (Placer Dome, now Barrick 2011);
Baomahuni, Sierra Leone (Amara Mining
2011), Marmato, Colombia (Gran-Colombia
Gold 2011) and San Albino-Murra, Nicaragua
(Golden Reign Resources 2012).
As exploring for gold in the tropics
involves different geological environments
than in other regions, Gold Exploration in
Tropical Landscapes provides an online, self-
paced course available at Edumine.com that
offers field techniques and cultural etiquette.
This course will better prepare geologists and
their crew before heading to the field, and
will appeal to anyone with an interest in
early-stage gold projects situated at tropical
latitudes.
Course author, Danae Voormeij, M.Sc.,
PGeo, draws on a decade's worth of field
experience in lateritic environments and a
year of dedicated research on tropical gold
geochemistry. In 2012, she discovered Tuzon
for Hummingbird Resources, a 2 million
ounce gold deposit in Liberia, West Africa.
For more information refer to www.myna
-
hexploration.com or www.Edumine.com.
n
Supergene gold from artisanal laterite workings
in Liberia. Photo by Alexander Lerche.
Tropical gold
exploration course
available online
