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Location: 16 km N from Balkhash, Kazakhstan
Abugaliyev Street 4BalkhashKazakhstan
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The Kounrad open pit copper mine is located in the Balkhash metallogenic belt within the BalkhashJunggar orogenic belt of the Central Asian Metallogenic Domain (“CAMD”). The geology encompassing the deposit comprises porphyry copper mineralisation related to tectono-magmatism during the Devonian and Carboniferous-Permian volcano-magmatic arcs. Site geology consists of unconsolidated sediments and granitic bedrock units. Sediments range from gravels, to sand and silts with some units being reported as ‘‘cemented’’ sediments. Bedrock ranges from granite to granodiorite. Highly weathered at the surface, the bedrock grades to competent rock within 10-40m from the surface. Weathering and supergene enrichment have produced a general zonation of the mineralisation in the deposit: - Oxidised cap - characterised by hematite, limonite, manganese oxyhydroxide, malachite, azurite, cuprite, native copper, chrysocolla mineralisation; - Leached zone - characterised by moderate oxidation in the upper part and destabilisation of sulphide minerals under acidic conditions in the lower parts; - Supergene blanket - characterised by chalcocite and covellite mineralisation; and - Primary sulphide zone - characterised by disseminated and stockwork ore with pyrite, chalcopyrite, enargite and chalcocite mineralisation. All of these mineralised phases, to a greater or lesser extent, are reflected in the composition of the waste dumps. Very importantly from a dump leaching standpoint is the fact that there is a layer of impermeable clay/cemented material at or close to surface which effectively acts as a barrier to percolating fluids, thus allowing capture of the pregnant liquor with only very minor permeation below this layer.
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