Superior Craton - Economic Geology

Economic Geology

The Superior Province is the mining heartland of Canada with major mining camps in the Abitibi district of Ontario-Quebec and Red Lake region of western Ontario. The Sudbury structure located on the southeastern edge of the Superior Province is one of the world's largest nickel producing regions. The Big Trout Lake belt and others have nickel and platinum group elements (PGE) potentials. (Percival, 2006).

The Northern Superior Superterrane (NSS) hosts diamondiferous kimberlite at the Victor pipe in the Attawapiskat area. Additional exploration targets have been identified through kimberlite indicator minerals in the Ontario-Manitoba border region, the Wemindgi and Otish Mountains in Central Quebec, the Wawa region in south Ontario, and the Timiskaming/Temagami areas in southeastern Ontario near the border of Quebec. Production at Victor project is planned for 2008.

Twenty-five percent of Canadian gold production has come from the Schreiber-Hemlo Greenstone Belt in the Wawa subprovince in the south Ontario. The Shebandowan-Schreiber mineral belt hosts important gold, iron, volcanic-hosted massive sulfide and intrusion-hosted Ni deposits (Percival, 2006). The most significant is the Hemlo gold camp. At present, three mines exploit the Hemlo gold deposit (Williams, Golden Giant, and David Bell mines). The world-class Hemlo deposit was a major gold discovery in Canada during the 1980s and contains ~22 million ounces (680 t) of gold. Average gold grade for the main deposit (84 Mt of ore, 21 Moz Au) is 7.7 g/t. (Bodycomb, 2000). The Uchi subprovince of the North Carribou terrane hosts some of the largest mineral deposits of the western Superior region, including the Red Lake gold camp. These rocks host both world-class gold deposits and massive sulfide mineralization. Iron formations in the central North Caribou terrane host the Musselwhite lode gold deposit. The Quetico-western Wabigoon Seine River-Rainy Lake fault is an area known for numerous gold showings. Small deposits East of Lake Nipigon hosts the Long Lac vein gold deposits. (Percival, 2006).

The Abitibi subprovince in the east hosts some of the richest mineral deposits of the Superior Province, including the giant Kidd Creek massive sulfide deposit and the large gold camps of Ontario and Quebec. The northern Abitibi belt is best known for the Matagami-Chibougamau mineral belt, characterized mainly by Cu-Zn massive sulfide deposits, Cu-Zn vein deposits and some lode gold deposits. The central zone has massive sulfides as well as vein gold deposits. The southern Abitibi belt hosts the Timmins-Val d'Or mineral belt, known for its numerous gold deposits, major Cu-Zn massive sulfide deposits, komatiite and intrusion-related Ni deposits, some pegmatite-hosted deposits and minor porphyry type mineralization. The richly gold-mineralized Cadillac-Larder Lake break forms the southern boundary of the belt. The Abitibi belt also has some of the largest massive sulfide deposits in the province. (Percival, 2006).