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  3. Global assessment of undiscovred copper resources

Western Sierra Madre Occidental and Laramide Central

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Belt of Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene (Laramide) magmatic arc rocks in the Sierra Madre Occidental, eastern Mexican Basin and Range, and the Mesa Central of north-central Mexico and extensions north in to the U.S
Tract ID 003pCu3007x
Country Mexico-United States of America
Commodity Cu
Study area name Mexico and US revised
Tectonic setting continental margin
Deposit type porphyry copper
Grade-tonnage model General porphyry copper model (Singer and others, 2008)
Geologic age
Geologic feature age Late Cretacous through Eocene (Laramide)
Generalized age Tertiary-Paleogene
Oldest rocks age 99.6Ma
Youngest rocks age 33.9Ma
Age range 65.7Ma
Identified Cu resources 148,000,000metric tons
Known prospects 24
Mean Cu (t/sq km) 419t/sq km
Map scales used 250K, 500K

Results of the assessment

Assessment date 2012
Estimators Francisco Cendejas-Cruz, Enrique Espinosa, Floyd Gray, Jane Hammarstrom, Steve Ludington, Gilpin Robinson, Efren Pérez-Segura, Martín Valencia-Morena, José Luis Rodríguez-Castañeda, Lukas Zürcher AND 1996 USGS National Mineral Resource Assessment T
Assessment depth 1km
Quantitative assessment Yes

Estimated number of deposits

Number of deposits Confidence level
8 90%
16 50%
26 10%
26 5%
26 1%
Mean estimated deposits 16.06 ±6.59 (0.41%)
Probability of mean 0.38
Probability of no copper 0.01

Estimated deposit density

Known
deposits		 Total
deposits		 Area
(sq km)		 Deposit density
per 100,000 sq km
46 62.06 148,110 42

Mean estimated tonnage

Copper 62,000,000
Molybdenum 1,700,000
Gold 1,600
Silver 20,000
Ore 13,000

Undiscovered copper resource

Confidence level 95% 90% 50% 10% 5%
Tonnage 6,700,000 13,000,000 48,000,000 130,000,000 170,000,000

Economic analysis

Fraser country Mexico
Fraser type 0.68%
Fraser high 0.32%
Typical cost 1%
High cost 0%
Infrastructure setting Typical
Comments on depth 57% cover; default
Expected depth distribution
0 - 250m 0.25
250m - 500m 0.25
500m - 1km 0.5
Economically recoverable resources
Copper 42,000,000t
Molybdenum 820,000t
Gold 840t
Silver 12,000t
Probability no econ recoverable 0.02
Econ NPV 12,000x $1M
Exp dollars 79.93x $1M/100,000 sq km
Exp value class High

Bibliographic references

General Hammarstrom and others (2010) and U.S. Geological Survey National Mineral Resource Assessment Team (2002)
Economic Robinson and Menzie (2012)
Hammarstrom, J.M., Robinson, G.R., Jr., Ludington, Steve, Gray, Floyd, Drenth, B.J., Cendejas-Cruz, Francisco, Espinosa, Enrique, Pérez-Segura, Efrén, Valencia-Moreno, Martín, Rodríguez-Castañeda, José Luis, Vásquez-Mendoza, Rigoberto, and Zürcher, Lukas,2010, Porphyry copper assessment of Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5090–A, 176 p., http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2010/5090/a/ AND U.S. Geological Survey National Mineral Resource Assessment Team, 2002, Assessment of undiscovered deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States—A portable document (pfd) recompilation of USGS Open-file Report 96-96 and Circular 1178, recompiled by Paul Schruben: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 02-198, http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2002/of02-198/.Robinson, G.R., Jr., and Menzie, W.D., 2012, Economic filters for evaluating porphyry copper deposit resource assessments using grade-tonnage deposit models, with examples from the U.S. Geological Survey global mineral resource assessment (ver 1.2, March 2014): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5090–H, 21 p., http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2010/5090/h/.

Deposits and prospects associated with this tract

Name Type State Country Development Details
Aurora prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Bahuerachi deposit Chihuahua Mexico Prospect Details
Cananea deposit Sonora Mexico Producer Details
Cerro Chileno prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
Cerro Colorado prospect Chihuahua Mexico Occurrence Details
Cerro Colorado (Batopilas) prospect Chihuahua Mexico Occurrence Details
Cobre Rico prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Corral De Piedra prospect Durango Mexico Occurrence Details
Cuatro Hermanos deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
Cumobabi deposit Sonora Mexico Prospect Details
El Alacran prospect Sonora Mexico Prospect Details
El Batamote deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
El Pilar prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
El Pulpo prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
La Azulita prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
La Caridad deposit Sonora Mexico Producer Details
La Desencantada prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
La Florida deposit Sonora Mexico Prospect Details
Las Higueras prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
Los Verdes prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Luz del Cobre deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
Malpica deposit Sinaloa Mexico Past Producer Details
Mariquita deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
Milpillas deposit Sonora Mexico Prospect Details
Pilares deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
San Javier prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Santo Tomas deposit Sinaloa Mexico Prospect Details
Satevo prospect Chihuahua Mexico Occurrence Details
Suaqui Verde deposit Sonora Mexico Past Producer Details
Tahonas prospect Chihuahua Mexico Occurrence Details
Tameapa deposit Sinaloa Mexico Prospect Details
Tango prospect Sinaloa Mexico Occurrence Details
Washington prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Zonia prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Bagdad deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Buckeye East prospect Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Casa Grande West deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Castle Dome deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Chilito deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Christmas deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Copper Basin deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Copper Butte prospect Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Four Metals prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Copper Creek deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Dragoon prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Dynamite prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Emerald Isle prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Esperanza-Sierrita deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
Gunnison prospect Arizona United States Past Producer Details
Ithaca Peak deposit Arizona United States Past Producer Details
Johnson Camp deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
Korn Kob prospect Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Lakeshore deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Morgan Peak prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Miami-Inspiration deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
Mineral Butte deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Mission-Pima deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
Oracle Ridge prospect Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Pine Flat deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Poston Butte deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Resolution prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Ray deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
Red Hills deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Red Mountain deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Rosemont-Helvetia deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Sacaton deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Silver Bell deposit Arizona United States Producer Details
San Manuel-Kalamazoo deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
San Xavier North deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Sheep Mountain deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Squaw Peak deposit Arizona United States Past Producer Details
Sunnyside deposit Arizona United States Prospect Details
Vekol Hills deposit Arizona United States Past Producer Details
Superior East deposit Arizona United States Prospect Details
Swansea prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Turquoise prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Twin Buttes deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Two Peaks deposit Arizona United States Occurrence Details
La Bella Esperanza prospect Sonora Mexico Occurrence Details
Gibson prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details
Kabba prospect Arizona United States Occurrence Details
Ventura prospect Arizona United States Prospect Details