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Geologic information:
Deposit type: Porphyry copper Deposit subtype: Cu-Au Minerals: actinolite, anhydrite/gypsum, apatite, biotite, bornite, chalcocite, chalcopyrite, chlorite, covellite, epidote, galena, gold, hematite/specularite, kaolinite, magnetite, molybdenite, pyrite, rutile, sericite, sphalerite, stannite, tetrahedrite/tennantite, zeolite Commodity and development information: Development status: Past Producer Major commodities: Cu Minor commodities: Pt, Pd Tonnage (Mt): 1,420Mt to 1,838Mt Cu grade (%): 0.465% Au grade (g/t): 0.57g/t Ag grade (g/t): 1.1g/t Contained copper: 6,600,000t |
The Panguna mine is a large copper mine located in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. Panguna represents one of the largest copper reserves in Papua New Guinea and in the world, having an estimated reserve of one billion tonnes of ore copper and twelve million ounces of gold. The Panguna mine is 3rd largest open pit mine in the world. The mine has been closed since 1989 and has ceased all production. The Bougainville government is looking for new partners to reopen the mine as the Rio Tinto and BCL's contracts expire.
Reopening
The autonomous government of Bougainville wants to reopen the mine for the purpose of seeking an independent funding source. Estimates place the cost of reopening the mine at $5 to $6 billion
Reopening
The autonomous government of Bougainville wants to reopen the mine for the purpose of seeking an independent funding source. Estimates place the cost of reopening the mine at $5 to $6 billion