National Planning of 9 Copper Mining Area in China



National Planning of 9 Copper Mining Area in China

The National Mineral Resources Planning (2016-2020) issued by the Ministry of Land and Resources specifies national planning of 9 copper mining area across the country.

1. Baijiazuizi Copper Nickel Mine

The Baijiazuizi copper nickel mining area is a super-large copper nickel deposit in Jinchang City with total proven reserves of 3.5044 million tons of copper and 5.5365 million tons of nickel, a nickel grade of between 0.47%-1.64% and a copper grade of between 0.24%- 1.66%. The deposit is also an important source of platinum group metal and cobalt metal in china. The ore-bearing rock mass is NW trending, with a total length of 6 km and a thickness of 10 m to over 300 m, and inclines for over hundreds to over 1,000 km.

2. Dabaoshan Copper Polymetallic Mine

The Dabaoshan deposit is located about 30km southeast of Shaoguan, Guangdong province. Through exploration during 1950s-1960s, the deposit has proven reserves of 100 million tons of iron ores, 1.67 million tons of lead and zinc and 880,000 tons of copper. In addition, a large amount of molybdenum ores have been found in the rock mass and contact zone. Among them, the largest No. 1 ore body is 2,640 m long, 350 m wide with an average thickness of 55 m. The average lead content is 1.77% and zinc is 4.44%. There is a large amount of iron, copper, lead and zinc respectively in the deposit, accompanied by molybdenum, tungsten and other useful components.

Since it was built and put into operation in 1975, Dabaoshan Mine has mainly produced copper, iron and sulfur, and through more than 30 years of mining and many private mining operations, the mine's reserves of iron, copper and sulfur have declined steadily. Based on the current production size, the mine's iron ore and copper sulfur ore resources can only sustain production for 2 years and 10 years or so. The mine is in severe crisis. In recent years, some important progress has been made in prospecting for ores at the deep edges of ore deposits of mines in crisis and about 300,000 tons of molybdenum resources have been brought under control. The deep edges of ore deposits have great potential!

In 2015, a thick copper sulfur ore body was found through drilling and verification and 2 drill holes exposed porphyry copper sulfur ores for the first time, opening up a new space for deep ore prospecting. It is estimated that through this effort, copper resources have been increased by 206,000 tons, with an average Cu grade of 1.24% and S 23.12%.

3. Zijinshan Copper Gold Mine

Zijinshan Copper Gold Mine is one of the super-large nonferrous metal mines discovered and verified in China in the 1980s. It is a typical porphyry deposit with a large-scale gold deposit above a large-scale copper deposit. Until the end of 2016, the total proven reserves of available gold resources were 318 tons, the total proven reserves of copper ore resources were 315.8 million tons and the reserves of prospective resources exceeded 5 million tons.The production of 99.99% cathode copper from Zijinshan's low-grade copper ores by using the "microbial heapleaching-extraction-electrowinning" hydrometallurgy production process was listed as a national 10th Five-Year scientific and technological project. Zijinshan's high-grade copper ores are processed using the "step-by-step floating copper before sulfur" flotation process to produce high quality copper concentrates and sulfur concentrates. In October 2011, "Fujian Shanghang Zijinshan copper, gold and non-ferrous metals utilization demonstration base" was recognized by the Ministry of Land and Resources among the first group of 40 national demonstration bases of comprehensive utilization of mineral resources.In 2016, Zijinshan Copper Gold Mine produced 7.37 tons of gold and 57,000 tons of copper.

4. Dexing Copper Mine

Dexing Copper Mine, located in the territory of Dexing, Shangrao, Jiangxi Province at the foot of the Peacock Mountain of the Huaiyu Ridge, is Asia's largest open-air copper mine. Dexing Copper Mine has rich and reliable resources, with copper reserves ranking first in the country. The mineral deposits are characterized by large and concentrated reserves, shallow burial, small stripping ratio, good ore availability, and multiple elements for comprehensive utilization. Dexing is reputed as the "City of Copper in China"!

Dexing Copper Mine is a super-large open-pit copper mine with a mining area of 1.3 × 105t/d and a total area of about 37 km2. The mine's daily ore production has reached 100,000 tons and met the production standards. The mine currently has two mining fields: Tongchang and Fujiawu, and has become a main mine of copper companies in Jiangxi. The completion of China's first nonferrous mine is expected to help Dexing Copper Mine take a place among the world's advanced copper mines.

5. Chengmenshan Copper Mine

Chengmenshan Copper Mine, located in the territory of Jiujiang County, Jiangxi Province, was discovered in 1958. After 20 years of careful and repeated exploration, it has been proved that this mine mainly produces sulfur and copper in addition to large deposits made up of iron, molybdenum, associated gold and silver and molybdenum, and other elements.

Chengmenshan Copper Mine contains 108 copper ore bodies, among which 9 ore bodies each has more than 50,000 tons of copper, almost covering all the reserves. There are 5 ore bodies: No. 1, 3, 5, 6 and 7 in the south, No. 21 ore body in the west, and 3 ore bodies: No. 12, 13 and 15 in the north. Among them, No. 1 ore body is the largest one.

6. Dahongshan Copper Mine

Dahongshan Copper Mine, located in Jiasa Town, Xinping Yi and Dai Autonomous County, Yuxi City, Yunnan Province, is currently the only copper mine in Southwest China that has a relatively higher grade and larger reserves of copper and good investment efficiency and was listed as a key construction project of the national 8th Five-Year Plan for four consecutive years.

On July 1, 1997, Dahongshan Copper Mine project I was completed and put into operation with an annual production of 8,000 tons of copper concentrates and 210,000 tons of iron concentrates and has become the main mine of Yunnan Copper.

On June 26, 2003, Dahongshan Copper Mine project II was completed and put into operation with an annual production of 14,700 tons of copper concentrates and 400,000 tons of iron concentrates.

In 2006, Dahongshan Copper Mine's annual production capacity of copper concentrates and iron concentrates reached 22,000 tons and 520,000 tons respectively. In 2011, the mine produced more than 5 million tons of ores.

7. Pulang Copper Mine

Pulang Copper Mine, located in the northeast of Shangri-La County, Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the northwest of Yunnan Province, is a super-large polymetallic mine and by far the largest porphyry copper mine found in Asia. It is also one of the 47 national prospecting & exploration areas.

At present, 4.80 million tons of copper, 145 tons of gold, 2,754 tons of silver and 190,000 tons of molybdenum have been detected from the Pulang Copper Mine. The total investment of the project is 6.471 billion yuan.

Since its launch in 2004, the Pulang Copper Mine project was officially commissioned on March 6, 2017, 13 years later.

8. Qulong Copper Mine

Qulongcheng Mine, located in the middle of the Tibet autonomous region, has an average altitude of more than 4000 m. Qulong Porphyry Copper Molybdenum Deposit, located in the east of the Tibet Gangdise porphyry copper belt, an important copper belt discovered in China in recent years, is the most important super-large deposit of this copper belt with copper reserves of up to 711 Mt (average Cu grade of 0.5%). The deposit is by far the largest porphyry copper molybdenum deposit in China.

9. Yulong Copper Mine

The Yulong porphyry copper molybdenum belt, discovered in the 1960s, is one of the most prospective porphyry copper molybdenum belts in China. In addition to the Yulong copper deposit, the Yulong porphyry copper molybdenum belt is surrounded by a number of medium and large copper deposits with millions of tons of reserves such as Malasongduo, Duoxiasongduo, Zhanaga and Mangzong.

The belt has about 9.5 million tons of proven Cu resources, more than 400,000 tons of Mo and associated elements such as Ag, Au, S, Fe, Pb, Zn, Co, W and Bi. In addition to the aforesaid metal minerals, there are smaller coal seams in Tuoba and Duogaila and salt mines in the tertiary Gongjue red layer.