GSNZ Otago branch talk
Two short talks both broadly related to gold exploration and working in the industry.
Samantha Muir and Graham Gibson (OceanaGold) will talk about the Waihi and Macraes operations, and how they use their geological knowledge in their day-to-day work.
Nick Cook (Mawson Gold) will present some exploration projects on orogenic gold in the Fennoscandian shield.
Kaikōrero (speaker): Samantha Muir and Graham Gibson – OceanaGold
Title: OceanaGold Waihi and Macraes Operations
Abstract: We are coming to talk to Earth Science/Geology students and give them a general overview about our operations and projects at both Waihi and Macraes. We will focus on the geological knowledge we use daily, how historic workings add complexity to the site and the equipment we work around. We will talk about job opportunities, possible career paths, and the importance of recruiting environmentally minded graduates into our business and the industry as a whole.
Kaikōrero (speaker): Nick Cook – Mawson Gold
Title: Finnish Paleoproterozoic gold: bring all your geological gold
Abstract: Paleoproterozoic gold forms an important component of global supply. Lapland in northern Finland has one large gold mine (Kittila), in addition to numerous recent significant discoveries ranging from a few hundred thousand to over 4 million ounces. The age of these gold deposits range from 1.75 and 1.95 Ga. Some of these systems are classic greenstone-hosted gold-rich orogenic systems, but many contain an “atypical Au-Co-Cu-Ni association”.
The Rompas and Rajapalot projects in the Peräpohja belt in Finnish Lapland have been explored now for more than 10 years, evolving to the status of an “Inferred Mineral Resource estimate” of over one million ounces gold equivalent (gold+cobalt). This evolution has been aided by the close cooperation of the Mawson exploration team and researchers from the Geological Survey of Finland and various universities.
Detailed field, petrographic, geochemical and isotopic research indicates that components of the mineralising process commenced >2.05 Ga and episodically continued through to approximately 1.75 Ga. The 300 million years of Paleoproterozoic is uncovered with a journey through the eyes of an exploration geologist supported by a team of co-workers, from “practical” field geologists to research-focussed ore deposit experts and isotope geochronologists.
Zoom link https://bit.ly/otagogeology
Contact: Jack Williams jack.williams@otago.ac.nz