Critical Minerals Geology

October 2020

Prof. Nigel Cook
University of Adelaide, Australia

Prof. Gregor Borg
Martin-Luther University, Germany

Assoc. Prof Dan Smith
University of Leicester, UK

The last 10 years has witnessed a significant trend towards renewable materials driven by the ever-increasing demand for green energy, electric vehicles, energy storage, robotics and nano-technologies. Major economies, including Australia have established national strategies to deal with supply and demand and encourage exploration for these minerals.

IOCG Deposits: Occurrences and Diversity

June 2020

Prof. Roberto Xavier
ADIMB and University of Campinas, Brasil

Prof. Hamid Mumin
Brandon University, Canada

Dr Cristiana Ciobanu
University of Adelaide, Australia

Dr George Case
Geological Survey, USA

Prof. Paul Dirks
James Cook University, Australia

The IOCG (iron oxide copper gold) deposits comprise a diverse family of ore deposits having a wide range of metal content and geological characteristics.  The primary metal extracted from IOCG deposits is Cu with Au having a secondary importance. It is common for IOCG deposits to contain important quantities of U, REE, Ag, Co, Mo and many other metals in small quantities. IOCG deposits occur in a variety of tectonic settings, have been described from all continents and, from Archean to Phanerozoic terrains. Although, they share some common geological characteristics, their diversity in metal content, alteration assemblages, geological and tectonic settings makes exploration for IOCG deposits challenging.

The tectonic and structural setting of Mt Isa Inlier – implications for deposit models and exploration

May 2020

Dr Peter Betts
Monash University, Australia

Prof. Tom Blenkinsop
Cardiff University, United Kingdom

Dr Nick Oliver
HOCV Global, Australia

Dr Karen Connors
University of Queensland, Australia

Dr George Gibson
Australian National University, Australia

The Mount Isa Inlier of NW Australia is a giant metallogenic province that hosts world class Pb-Zn (±Ag, Cu), Cu-Au (±Mo, Co, U) and U-REE deposits. Although the area has experienced significant exploration activity and been the subject to numerous academic studies, no major discoveries have been made for more than 20 years.  Given the lack of new discoveries, a critical assessment and re-evaluation of existing tectonic and deposit models is required.