Goongewa mine (Twelve Mile Bore; Prices Creek), Fitzroy Crossing, Derby-West Kimberley Shire, Western Australia, Australiai

Regional Level Types
Goongewa mine (Twelve Mile Bore; Prices Creek)	Mine
Fitzroy Crossing	- not defined -
Derby-West Kimberley Shire	Shire
Western Australia	State
Australia	Country

A limestone-hosted Mississippi style lead-zinc deposit currently operating with the nearby Cadjebut mine, 65 km southeast of Fitzroy Crossing.

Located approximately 15 kilometres north-west of the Cadjebut Mine. The mines in the area are Mississippi Valley Type (MVT) deposits, one of only two of this type found in Australia.

Exploration commenced in the area by BHP from 1974, and the Goongewa orebody was discovered in 1985. Western Metals bought the deposits in the area from BHP in 1994, as BHP considered the project too small for its portfolio. A combination of debt and poor currency hedging decisions saw Western Metals go into administration in 2006, and Canadian miner Teck bought the deposits for $26 million (Australian) in the same year. They formed a joint venture the next year with Falconbridge. In 2009 Meridian Metals bought the area for only $500 000, did some drilling and then little else. The mines remain closed and rehabilitated. The Goongewa underground mine closed in 2001.

The orebodies are hosted by the Lennard Shelf, a 2 kilometre thick dolomitised Devonian reef complex. The reefs developed at this time in the shallow seas of the Canning Basin, which changed to limestone which hosts the lead and zinc mineralisation. Faults were active along the margins of the Canning Basin during its formation period. The most important are Pinnacles and Cadjebut Faults. These formed a conduit for the metal rich brines, and were forced up the faults to the porous brittle limestone, which were receptive to the minerals.

The Goongewa deposit occurs in the hanging wall of the Cadjebut Fault at the boundary of the dolomitised and undolomitised carbonates. Sulphides form as cavity filling cements, and include sphalerite stalactites indication an open or gas filled space during near surface mineralisation. The orebody also contains calcite, zinc in sphalerite, lead in galena, pyrite, marcasite and significant silver values. The Goongewa orebody forms a series of irregular shaped pods, located 100-250 metres below the surface.

In 1996, an Australian mineral dealer was given one hour by the operators to retrieve specimens from a 10 x 10 metre calcite cavity lined with marcasite, before explosives were used to destroy the site. Older specimens may come labelled Twelve Mile Bore.

See Cadjebut mine for more information.

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References