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Aouli, Mibladen, Aït Oufella Caïdat, Midelt Cercle, Midelt Province, Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Moroccoi
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Aouli | Mine (Abandoned) |
| Mibladen | Commune |
| Aït Oufella Caïdat | Caïdat |
| Midelt Cercle | Cercle |
| Midelt Province | Province |
| Drâa-Tafilalet Region | Region |
| Morocco | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
32° 48' 39'' North , 4° 35' 37'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Mine (Abandoned) - last checked 2024
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Midelt | 45,159 (2016) | 19.9km |
Vein-type lead-zinc deposit near the village of Aouli, consisting of (1) several large NE-SW trending sulphide-dominated veins, up to 40 m thick and 13 km long, and (2) smaller baryte-fluorite dominated veins, up to 10 m thick, trending NE-SW and E-W. The veins are mainly hosted in Paleozoic rocks.
This deposit has been operated by various French companies from 1923 to 1960.
Aouli is about 26 km (ca. 16 mi) NE of Midelt by road. It formed part of a large Moroccan lead ore mining area (Haute-Moulaya) active from around 1926 until 1975. It is made up of a vein-shaped deposit with the most important veins at Aouli, Sidi Ayad and Sidi Said (approximately 60–80 veins in total). The basement consists of Paleozoic schists into which granites intruded. The top layers are Permo-Triassic (sandstones, arcs, and conglomerates as well as basalts and trachytes). The ore-bearing tunnels (with a few exceptions) extend in slate. The Aouli mining area is known for collecting grades of azurite, malachite, galena, baryte, coronadite and fluorite.
The fluorite is mostly clear to pale yellow, in cubic crystals up to 1-7 cm, and commonly sitting on quartz/baryte. The most spectacular fluorites originate from Sidi Ayad and Sidi Said, with the more beautiful fluorites erroneously labeled “Aouli” coming mainly from the Sidi Ayad veins located in the north of the district in the middle of a desert area. This area is really only accessible by 4-wheel drive vehicles.
From time to time, local residents resume small operations and manage to get out some fluorite from the abandoned and cleared tunnels. In the main vein at Sidi Ayad local people work in formerly exploited parts, which makes them very dangerous places (falling rocks, presence of wells, etc.). Whilst there are other veins that have produced fluorite, they are much smaller. As elsewhere in Morocco, people work only with chisels and hammers, without protection. In addition, it should be known that, as for all the veins at Aouli, working on them is in principle prohibited since the permits belong to private companies. The Aouli veins were not actually exploited for fluorite but for galena. Fluorite is found in relatively large quantities in the dumps. A few older (former) miners still go to the old quarries to break galena (used as "khol" for eye makeup).
Unfortunately, the main veins located in the south of the district are very poor in fluorite and for mineralogical specimens in general. In fact, the presence of fluorite is linked to the proximity of the Moulouya granite. Whilst the fluorite as a whole is relatively rare at this locality, crystals are quite common. Unfortunately, they remain small (usually 1-3 cm, maximum 10 cm) and their entanglement makes them difficult to extract without damaging them.
For agates labelled as coming from Aouli, see info on the Fulus Mountain page.
This deposit has been operated by various French companies from 1923 to 1960.
Aouli is about 26 km (ca. 16 mi) NE of Midelt by road. It formed part of a large Moroccan lead ore mining area (Haute-Moulaya) active from around 1926 until 1975. It is made up of a vein-shaped deposit with the most important veins at Aouli, Sidi Ayad and Sidi Said (approximately 60–80 veins in total). The basement consists of Paleozoic schists into which granites intruded. The top layers are Permo-Triassic (sandstones, arcs, and conglomerates as well as basalts and trachytes). The ore-bearing tunnels (with a few exceptions) extend in slate. The Aouli mining area is known for collecting grades of azurite, malachite, galena, baryte, coronadite and fluorite.
The fluorite is mostly clear to pale yellow, in cubic crystals up to 1-7 cm, and commonly sitting on quartz/baryte. The most spectacular fluorites originate from Sidi Ayad and Sidi Said, with the more beautiful fluorites erroneously labeled “Aouli” coming mainly from the Sidi Ayad veins located in the north of the district in the middle of a desert area. This area is really only accessible by 4-wheel drive vehicles.
From time to time, local residents resume small operations and manage to get out some fluorite from the abandoned and cleared tunnels. In the main vein at Sidi Ayad local people work in formerly exploited parts, which makes them very dangerous places (falling rocks, presence of wells, etc.). Whilst there are other veins that have produced fluorite, they are much smaller. As elsewhere in Morocco, people work only with chisels and hammers, without protection. In addition, it should be known that, as for all the veins at Aouli, working on them is in principle prohibited since the permits belong to private companies. The Aouli veins were not actually exploited for fluorite but for galena. Fluorite is found in relatively large quantities in the dumps. A few older (former) miners still go to the old quarries to break galena (used as "khol" for eye makeup).
Unfortunately, the main veins located in the south of the district are very poor in fluorite and for mineralogical specimens in general. In fact, the presence of fluorite is linked to the proximity of the Moulouya granite. Whilst the fluorite as a whole is relatively rare at this locality, crystals are quite common. Unfortunately, they remain small (usually 1-3 cm, maximum 10 cm) and their entanglement makes them difficult to extract without damaging them.
For agates labelled as coming from Aouli, see info on the Fulus Mountain page.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsMineral List
Mineral list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities29 valid minerals.
Rock Types Recorded
Rock list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities
Select Rock List Type
Alphabetical List Tree DiagramDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Anglesite Formula: PbSO4 |
| ⓘ Anhydrite Formula: CaSO4 |
| ⓘ Ankerite Formula: Ca(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2 |
| ⓘ Arsenopyrite Formula: FeAsS |
| ⓘ Azurite Formula: Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| ⓘ Baryte Formula: BaSO4 |
| ⓘ Bornite Formula: Cu5FeS4 |
| ⓘ Calcite Formula: CaCO3 |
| ⓘ Cerussite Formula: PbCO3 |
| ⓘ Chalcocite Formula: Cu2S |
| ⓘ Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ Covellite Formula: CuS |
| ⓘ Cuprite Formula: Cu2O |
| ⓘ Dolomite Formula: CaMg(CO3)2 |
| ⓘ Fluorite Formula: CaF2 |
| ⓘ Galena Formula: PbS |
| ⓘ Goethite Formula: Fe3+O(OH) |
| ⓘ Hematite Formula: Fe2O3 |
| ⓘ Malachite Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| ⓘ Marcasite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Native Bismuth Formula: Bi |
| ⓘ Native Copper Formula: Cu |
| ⓘ Native Silver Formula: Ag |
| ⓘ Nickeline Formula: NiAs |
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
| ⓘ Quartz var. Agate Formula: SiO2 |
| ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony Formula: SiO2 References: |
| ⓘ Siderite Formula: FeCO3 |
| ⓘ Sphalerite Formula: ZnS |
| ⓘ Sphalerite var. Schalenblende References: |
| ⓘ 'Tetrahedrite Group' Formula: M2(A6)M1(B4 C2)X3(D4)S1(Y12)S2(Z) |
| ⓘ 'Tourmaline' Formula: AD3G6(T6O18)(BO3)3X3Z |
| ⓘ Wulfenite Formula: Pb(MoO4) |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Native Copper | 1.AA.05 | Cu |
| ⓘ | Native Silver | 1.AA.05 | Ag |
| ⓘ | Native Bismuth | 1.CA.05 | Bi |
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
| ⓘ | Chalcocite | 2.BA.05 | Cu2S |
| ⓘ | Bornite | 2.BA.15 | Cu5FeS4 |
| ⓘ | Covellite | 2.CA.05a | CuS |
| ⓘ | Sphalerite var. Schalenblende | 2.CB.05a | ZnS |
| ⓘ | 2.CB.05a | ZnS | |
| ⓘ | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ | Nickeline | 2.CC.05 | NiAs |
| ⓘ | Galena | 2.CD.10 | PbS |
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| ⓘ | Marcasite | 2.EB.10a | FeS2 |
| ⓘ | Arsenopyrite | 2.EB.20 | FeAsS |
| Group 3 - Halides | |||
| ⓘ | Fluorite | 3.AB.25 | CaF2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Cuprite | 4.AA.10 | Cu2O |
| ⓘ | Hematite | 4.CB.05 | Fe2O3 |
| ⓘ | Quartz var. Agate | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| ⓘ | var. Chalcedony | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| ⓘ | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 | |
| ⓘ | Goethite | 4.FD.10 | Fe3+O(OH) |
| Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates | |||
| ⓘ | Calcite | 5.AB.05 | CaCO3 |
| ⓘ | Siderite | 5.AB.05 | FeCO3 |
| ⓘ | Ankerite | 5.AB.10 | Ca(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2 |
| ⓘ | Dolomite | 5.AB.10 | CaMg(CO3)2 |
| ⓘ | Cerussite | 5.AB.15 | PbCO3 |
| ⓘ | Azurite | 5.BA.05 | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| ⓘ | Malachite | 5.BA.10 | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates | |||
| ⓘ | Anhydrite | 7.AD.30 | CaSO4 |
| ⓘ | Anglesite | 7.AD.35 | PbSO4 |
| ⓘ | Baryte | 7.AD.35 | BaSO4 |
| ⓘ | Wulfenite | 7.GA.05 | Pb(MoO4) |
| Unclassified | |||
| ⓘ | 'Tourmaline' | - | AD3G6(T6O18)(BO3)3X3Z |
| ⓘ | 'Tetrahedrite Group' | - | M2(A6)M1(B4 C2)X3(D4)S1(Y12)S2(Z) |
List of minerals for each chemical element
Localities in this Region
- Drâa-Tafilalet Region
- Midelt Province
- Midelt Cercle
- Aït Oufella Caïdat
- Mibladen
- Aouli
- Mibladen
- Aït Oufella Caïdat
- Midelt Cercle
- Midelt Province
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
AfricaContinent
African PlateTectonic Plate
- Atlas basinBasin
Morocco
- Drâa-Tafilalet Region
- Midelt Province
- Mibladen mining districtMining District
- Midelt Province
- Middle AtlasMountain Range
Northwest Africa MeteoritesGroup of Meteorite Fall Locations
This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to
visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders
for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
References
Jébrak, M., Marcoux, É., Nasloubi, M., Zaharaoui, M. (1998) From sandstone- to carbonate-hosted stratabound deposits: an isotope study of galena in the Upper-Moulouya District (Morocco). Mineralium Deposita, 33 (4). 406-415 doi:10.1007/s001260050158
Zaid, Khadra; Bouabdellah, Mohammed; Levresse, Gilles; Idbaroud, Mohamed; Melchiorre, Erik; Mathur, Ryan; Jébrak, Michel; Potra, Adriana; Yans, Johan; Frenzel, Max; et al. (2025) Mineralogy and Fluid Inclusion Constraints on the Genesis of the Recently Discovered Ag-(Ni-Co-Sb-As-Hg ± Bi) Vein Ore Shoot Mineralization in the Aouli Pb-Zn District (Upper Moulouya, Morocco). Minerals, 15 (7). doi:10.3390/min15070669
Aouli, Mibladen, Aït Oufella Caïdat, Midelt Cercle, Midelt Province, Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Morocco