Vekol Hills

The Vekol Hills is a copper mine located in Pinal county, Arizona at an elevation of 1,801 feet.

About the MRDS Data:

All mine locations were obtained from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System. The locations and other information in this database have not been verified for accuracy. It should be assumed that all mines are on private property.

Mine Info

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Site Name

Primary: Vekol Hills
Secondary: Newmont Vekol
Secondary: Vekol Mine

Commodity

Primary: Copper
Secondary: Silver
Secondary: Gold
Secondary: Molybdenum
Tertiary: Lead
Tertiary: Zinc

Location

State: Arizona
County: Pinal

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Type: Private Lease

Workings

Type: Underground

Ownership

Owner Name: Tohono O'odham Nation
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Arizona

Production

Year: 1965
Time Period: 1882-1965
Mined: 91000.000 mt

Deposit

Record Type: Deposit
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: Porphyry Cu
Operation Type: Surface
Mining Method: Open Pit
Year First Production: 1882
Year Last Production: 1965
Discovery Year: 1879
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: M

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Porphyry Cu

Orebody

Form: Pods, Irregular

Structure

Type: L
Description: Major Fracture Control; Complex Faulting And Tilting

Type: R
Structure: Limestone Dips W; E to NE trending faults in general area

Type: L
Structure: Fractures; Small N-S Faults at Mine

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration: Strong Oxidation

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Hypogene Enrichment, Minor Oxidation And Supergene Enrichment

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Tetrahedrite
Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Bornite
Ore: Chalcocite
Ore: Malachite
Ore: Silver
Ore: Gold
Ore: Molybdenite
Ore: Pyrite
Ore: Chrysocolla
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Smithsonite
Ore: Galena
Ore: Anglesite
Ore: Copper
Ore: Argentite
Gangue: Limonite
Gangue: Kaolinite
Gangue: Quartz
Gangue: Hematite
Gangue: Siderite
Gangue: Dickite
Gangue: Calcite

Comments

Comment (Workings): Status of Mining Method : PROPOSED Mining Method : BENCH (BERM) Swell Factor : .75 Percent Waste Rock : 67 Avg. Overburden Thickness : 107 Primary Material Cover : SAND, GRAVEL Percentage : 50 Secondary Material Cover : M-HARD ROCKS Percentage : 50 Hardness of Ore : M-HARD ROCKS Avg. Bench Height (meters): 15 Max. Pit Slope (degrees) : 40 Capacity : 18140 Capacity Units : MT ORE/DAY Preprod. Stripping Vol. : 28090 Unit Production Cost : 2.12 Units of Production : $/MT ORE Operating Days per Year : 355 Operating Shifts per Day : 3 Year of Information : 1977

Comment (Orebody): Type of Orebody #1 : STOCKWORK Shape of Orebody #1 : MASSIVE Type of Orebody #2 : DISSEMINATED Primary mode of Origin : HYDROTHERMAL Primary Ore Control : IGNEOUS Secondary Ore Control : FRACTURING Degree of Wallrock Alter. : UNKNOWN Type of Wallrock Alter. #1 : UNKNOWN Strike And Dip : N45E:10W Minimum Depth to Top : 107 Avg. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. : 30 Min. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. : 30 Total Surface Area (HA) : 822

Comment (Reserve-Resource): RC1=M1C1 QUANTITY MATRIX 1 COLUMN 1 CONTAINS THE SAME INFORMATION AS RESERVE RECORD 1. MOLY GRADE IS FROM DRAFT EIS P. 24.

Comment (Workings): ARGOSY SHAFT (300 FT DEEP), MAIN (VEKOL) SHAFT (400 FT DEEP), SERIES OF TUNNELS ALONG S SIDE OF ARROYO E OF MAIN SHAFT; WORKINGS ARE INTERCONNECTED UNDERGROUND

Comment (Economic Factors): THE DECISION TO PROCEED WITH DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROPERTY IS IS STILL PENDING AS OF 1983.

Comment (Production): THIS PROPERTY IS ADJACENT TO THE OLD REWARD MINE DISCOVERED IN 1880.

Comment (Production): ASSUME ORE AND CONCENTRATE WILL HAVE MINOR GOLD & SILVER VALUES, NOT KNOWN OR ESTIMATED AT THIS TIME.

Comment (Reserve-Resource): THE OVERLYING COPPER OXIDES WILL BE MINED IN PRE-PRODUCTION STRIPPING AND STOCKPILED FOR POSSIBLE LATER RECOVERY.

Comment (Location): LOCATED ON SW SLOPE OF A RIDGE RUNNING TO THE NW FROM THE MAIN BODY OF THE VEKOL MTS; UNPATENTED CLAIMS EXTEND INTO T10S R2E SEC 4; UTM MEASURED TO VEKOL SHAFT. INFO FROM LAND.ST : 1984

Comment (Geology): MINERALIZATION ASSOCIATED WITH LCRET-TERT VOLCANISM. ANDESITE MAPPED 1/2 MI N OF MINE ON MF-931

Comment (Development): PAPAGO INDIANS SHOWED DEPOSIT TO J.D. WALKER IN 1879; CLAIMS INCLUDE PATENTED CLAIMS MS4143 (GRANDFATHER, FLAT IRON, VEKOL ARGOSY, LOOKOUT, MOUNT VERNON), 15 UNPATENTED CLAIMS; PREVIOUS OWNERS/OPERATORS INCLUDE WALKER BROS (1880-1894), P.P. DAGGS (1905), W.J. FORBACH (1907-1913), COMPTON COPPER CO (1907), RAMON CRUZ (1907), VEKOL MINING CO (1910-1913), M.M. CARPENTER & GEO. E. HARMSEN (1914-1917), P.P. DAGGS (1920'S - 1931), VEKOL MINING & MILLING (1927) CHAS & PAUL R. DAGGS (1931-1951), ELLIOT BROS. (1951-1965), AMERICAN LAND CO (1965). 1984-86: ARGOSY MAPPED, SAMPLED, CARRIED OUT GEOPHYSICS PROGRAM, IDENTIFIED DRILL TARGETS, AND ASSEMBLED A HEAP LEACH FACILITY.

Comment (Workings): PROPOSED AS OPEN PIT MINE.

Comment (Deposit): PRECAMBRIAN THROUGH DEVONIAN AGE ROCKS WERE MINERALIZED BY SOLUTIONS ASSOCITED WITH LARAMIDE PORPHYRIES. THE PORPHYRIES THEMSELVES CONTAIN ONLY MINOR MINERALIZATION. OXIDATION AND SUPERGENE ENRICHMENT ARE RELATIVELY MINOR.

Comment (Deposit): RECORD # D002859 BY J. WILLIAM HASLER HAS BEEN INCORPORATED WITH THIS ONE. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Comment (Deposit): ORE CONCENTRATED ALONG N-S TRENDING FAULTS, IN A SHALY LIMESTONE DIPPING 10-30 SW.

Comment (Location): MINERALIZED AREA COVERS ABOUT A QUARTER SECTION ON EASTERLY SLOPING PEDIMENT AT NE EDGE OF VEKOL MTS. ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :(1984)

Comment (Deposit): THIS REPORT REPRESENTS A MERGER OF ORIGINAL RECORD M241177 WITH RECORD M030491 OF JAN WILT IN MOLYBDENUM FILE, CONTACT PERSON T.G. THEODORE, USGS ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

References

Reference (Reserve-Resource): Titley, S.R. and Anthony, E.Y., 1989, Laramide mineral deposits in Arizona; in Jenney, J.P. and Reynolds, S.J., eds., Geologic Evolution of Arizona, Arizona Geological Society, Digest 17, p. 485-514.

Reference (Reserve-Resource): Long, K.R., 1995, Production and reserves of Cordilleran (Alaska to Chile) porphyry copper deposits; in Pierce, F.W. and Bolm, J.G., eds., Porphyry Copper Deposits of the American Cordillera, Arizona Geological Society, Digest 20, p. 35-68.

Reference (Deposit): NIEMUTH, N.J., 1987, ARIZONA MINERAL DEVELOPMENT 1984-1986: ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES DIRECTORY 29, 46 P.

Reference (Deposit): PETERSON, J.A., AND TOSDAL, R.M., 1986, MINERAL OCCURRENCE MAP AND TABULATION OF GEOLOGIC, COMMODITY, AND PRODUCTION DATA, AJO AND LUKEVILLE QUADRANGLES, SOUTHWESTERN ARIZONA: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY MISCELLANEOUS FIELD STUDIES MAP MF-1834-A, SCALE 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): USAEC PRELIM RECONN REPT, 1953.

Reference (Deposit): TENNEY, 1927-29, HISTORY OF MINING IN AZ, P. 333-335. TENNEY, 1934, ABM, RECONN OF CASA GRANDE MINING DISTRICT.

Reference (Deposit): USGS MF-931

Reference (Deposit): BLM DISTRICT SHEET 542

Reference (Deposit): ADMR FILE DATA

Reference (Deposit): CARPENTER, 1947, PH.D. THESIS, STANFORD UNIV.

Reference (Deposit): ABGMT CLIPPINGS FILES

Reference (Deposit): ABGMT-USBM FILE DATA

Reference (Other Database): CIMRI

Reference (Deposit): CHAFFEE, 1977, USGS BULL 1278-E.

Reference (Deposit): SAWYER, M.B., GURMENDI, A.C., DALEY, M.R., AND HOWELL, S.B., 1992, PRINCIPAL DEPOSITS OF STRATEGIC AND CRITICAL MINERALS IN ARIZONA: U.S. BUREAU OF MINES SPECIAL PUBLICATION, 334 P.

Reference (Deposit): Steele, H.J., 1978, Vekol Hills copper deposit: Arizona Geological Society Digest 11, p. 36.

Reference (Deposit): GREELY, 1978, ADMR SPECIAL REPT 2, P. 83-87.

Arizona Gold

"Where to Find Gold in Arizona" looks at the density of modern placer mining claims along with historical gold mining locations and mining district descriptions to determine areas of high gold discovery potential in Arizona. Read more: Where to Find Gold in Arizona.