Mining Intelligence and News
Australia

Dugald River Mine

Click for more information

Categories

Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Zinc
  • Lead
  • Silver
  • Gold
  • Copper
Mining Method
  • Longitudinal open stoping
  • Transverse open stoping
  • Sub-level open stoping (SLOS)
  • Longhole open stoping
  • Avoca
Backfill type ... Lock
Production Start... Lock
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotDugald River is one of the world’s top 10 zinc operations.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
MMG Ltd. 100 % Indirect
The Dugald River mine is wholly owned by MMG Limited through MMG Dugald River Pty Ltd.

Contractors

Lock

- subscription is required.

Deposit type

  • Footwall hosted
  • Breccia pipe / Stockwork
  • Sediment-hosted

Summary:

The Dugald River style of mineralisation is a sedimentary and shear hosted base metal deposit. The main sulphides are sphalerite, pyrite, pyrrhotite and galena with minor arsenopyrite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, pyrargyrite, marcasite and alabandite.

The deposit is located within a 3km-4km along strike north-south trending high strain domain named the Mount Roseby Corridor and is hosted by steeply dipping mid Proterozoic sediments of the Mary Kathleen Zone in the Eastern Succession of the Mount Isa Inlier. The host sequence is composed of the Knapdale Quartzite and the Mount Roseby Schist Group (which includes the Hangingwall calc-silicate unit, the Dugald River Slate and the Lady Clayre Dolomite). The sequence is an interbedded package of greenschist to amphibolite grade metamorphosed carbonate and siliclastic lithologies.

The main Dugald River lode is hosted within a major N-S striking steeply west dipping shear zone which cross cuts the strike of the Dugald River Slate stratigraphy at a low angle. All significant zinc-lead-silver mineralisation is restricted to the main lode. Lesser-mineralised hanging wall and footwall lenses are present.

The five main types of mineralisation style recognised at Dugald River are sulphide stringer, banded ore, slatey breccia, pyrrhotite-slatey breccia and massive breccia.

The geometry of the deposit consists of the boudinaged main lens, which pinches and swells in thickness along strike and to depth. It is recognised that the previously modelled hangingwall and footwall domains (1A, 2, 3, 4 and 5) are part of the main lens which anastomoses, splits and merges. All zinc and associated lead-silver mineralisation are governed by this geometry.

The mineralogy of the Dugald River lode is typical of a shale-hosted base metal deposit. The gangue within the lode is composed of quartz, muscovite, carbonates, K-Feldspar, clays, graphite, carbonaceous matter and minor amounts of calcite, albite, chlorite, rutile, barite, garnet, and fluorite.

The mineralised zone extends approximately 2.4km in strike length and up to 1.4km down-dip.

Dimensions
The Dugald River lode is hosted within a major N-S striking steeply west dipping shear zone which cross cuts the strike of the Dugald River Slate stratigraphy at a low angle.

The strike length of mineralisation is approximately 2,400 m. Dip varies between 85° and 40° to the west.

The true thickness of the majority of the Mineral Resource is between 3 m and 30 m with the thickest zones occurring to the south.

The mineralisation is open at depth. The deepest drill intersection of mineralised material is about 1,140 m below the surface.

Reserves

Lock

- subscription is required.

Mining Methods

Lock

- subscription is required.

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Lock

- subscription is required.

Processing

Lock

- subscription is required.

Production

Zinc and Lead numbers are reported as production. Silver numbers are reported as sales.
CommodityProductUnits2024202320222021202020192018
Zinc Metal in concentrate t  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe170,057147,320
Zinc Concentrate kt  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe350293
Lead Metal in concentrate t  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe23,15416,693
Lead Concentrate kt  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe3929
Silver Payable metal oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe1,193,303899,409
^ Guidance / Forecast.

Operational metrics

Metrics202320222021202020192018
Ore tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe1,853,876 t1,473,804 t
Tonnes milled  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe1,975,569 t1,755,847 t
Waste  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe378 kt403 kt
Annual milling capacity  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe1.7 Mt

Production Costs

CommodityUnits2024202320222021202020192018
C1 cash costs Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 0.7 / lb **   0.58 / lb **  
^ Guidance / Forecast.
** Net of By-Product.

Financials

Units202320222021202020192018
Revenue M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 336   247.3  
EBIT M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 52.8   46.9  
EBITDA M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 108.7   87.6  

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Lock

- subscription is required.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNamePhoneEmailProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Subscription required May 14, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 14, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 14, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 14, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 10, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 14, 2024

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2023
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2022
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2021
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2020
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2019
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2017

Aerial view:

Lock

- subscription is required.