Name: Copperstone mine.
Location: The Copperstone mine is located in LaPaz County, in Western Arizona, in the US, within the Walker Lane mineral belt, where it intersects gold provinces in southern California and western Arizona.
Mine Owner/s: Arizona Gold Corp, previously Kerr Mines.
Brief Description: The Copperstone project is an historically productive high-grade gold mine.
Arizona Gold Corp is working towards restarting the mine.
The mine currently has a projected life span of 5.4 years – one year of preproduction and construction, and 4.4 years of full operations.
The mine is fully permitted, with significant mining infrastructure, mineral resources and processing infrastructure in place.
Brief History: The Copperstone project was acquired by Arizona Gold Corp, previously Kerr Mines, in June 2014.
Primary Metals/Minerals: Gold.
Secondary Metals/Minerals: None stated.
Geology/Mineralisation: Copperstone occurs within the“basin and range” province of the south-western US. The regional geology is strongly influenced by Tertiary-age detachment faults and younger high-angle normal faults. The Copperstone gold deposit is related to the Moon Mountain or Copper Peak detachment fault. Gold mineralisation occurs principally within the moderate to low-angle Copperstone fault, which has been interpreted to be a listric fault associated with the underlying Moon Mountain detachment fault. Gold occurs as native flakes within fault breccia, gouge and shear zones related to the faulting. The wall and host rocks are typically Triassic sediments and Jurassic quartz latite volcanics.
Gold is commonly associated with hematite, chlorite, quartz, manganese oxide and copper oxide mineralisation. At Copperstone mine, the gold is not encapsulated in sulphides or silica, and the ores do not contain active carbon. This means that the ores at Copperstone are not refractory because the ores appear to comprise original, primary or hypogene oxides minerals. Copperstone ores are not a weathered or oxidised material that started off as a sulphide, which is the common case.
Reserves: Total proven and probable reserves as at March 2018, were estimated at 884 106 t grading 6.8 g/t gold.
Resources: Total inferred resources are estimated at 734 073 t grading 6.8 g/t gold.
Mining Method: Conventional underground mining techniques.
Major Infrastructure and Equipment: Existing infrastructure includes a 69 kV power line and substation, and three water wells, all sufficient for the Copperstone mine. Additional infrastructure on site includes offices, maintenance shops and a laboratory building.
The Copperstone oxides, when ground in the mill, liberate the gold to be recovered in the gravity or flotation circuits. These ores also respond well to cyanide processes.
Prospects: Arizona Gold Corp plans to restart gold production in 2021.
The company’s current focus is on maximising Copperstone’s potential by defining and expanding current resources and further optimising the mine’s economics for purposes of the restart.
Contact Details:
Arizona Gold Corp
Email info@arizona-gold.com
https://www.arizona-gold.com