Apliki Mine, Apliki, Nicosia District, Cyprusi

Regional Level Types
Apliki Mine	Mine (Inactive)
Apliki	Village
Nicosia District	District
Cyprus	Country

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A copper-gold-pyrite mine owned by the Cyprus Mines Corp. Ore is replacement body in andesite extrusive.
Bronze age mining (from around 1400 BC).

An open pit that contains some of the largest massive sulphides on Cyprus.

The Apliki mine operated during 1968-1971 using the surface exploitatiomn method. mApproximately 1.081.250 tons of ore were extracted from the mine with an average content of about 1.8% of copper and 36% of sulfur. Ore processing took place at Mitsero plant using the flotation treatment method to produce copper and sulfur concentrates. The final product was exported by ship from Karavostasi.

The Apliki Mine is a historic open-pit copper mine situated in the northern part of the Troodos ophiolite, within the western sector of the Solea Graben. The deposit represents a classic Cyprus-type volcanogenic massive sulphide system hosted predominantly by the basal units of the Troodos Pillow Lava Series. Copper mineralisation is structurally controlled, particularly by a major north-northeast-trending, steeply dipping normal fault. Higher copper grades tend to occur on the hanging-wall side of this structure, although lower-grade mineralisation also extends into the footwall.

Mining at Apliki commenced during the 1960s under the Cyprus Mines Corporation but ceased prematurely following the political and military events of 1974. The historical operation left a substantial open pit, waste-rock and low-grade ore stockpiles, together with residual in-situ mineralisation beneath and around the former pit. The exposed workings provide an excellent view of the strongly altered volcanic sequence and the effects of oxidation and supergene enrichment on the original sulphide mineralisation.

The mineral assemblage varies vertically through the deposit. Near-surface and oxidised zones contain secondary copper minerals, including chalcocite, covellite, chrysocolla and locally delafossite, whereas the deeper and less altered parts of the deposit are dominated by primary chalcopyrite, commonly accompanied by pyrite. Unlike several polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits elsewhere in Cyprus, Apliki contains only limited concentrations of gold, zinc and lead.

The wider Apliki Project comprises three principal resource areas: the historic Apliki Mine, the West Apliki deposit and the Apliki stockpiles. A JORC-compliant mineral-resource estimate published in 2021 identified approximately 11 million tonnes of Indicated and Inferred resources at copper grades ranging from about 0.25% to 0.69% Cu, in addition to approximately 800,000 tonnes of stockpiled material classified at that time as Probable Reserves. West Apliki contains a significant body of relatively shallow, secondary copper mineralisation considered potentially suitable for heap leaching and hydrometallurgical processing.

The site is currently the subject of renewed exploration, technical assessment and redevelopment planning. The proposed development concept has included the recovery of copper from the historical stockpiles and near-surface mineralisation through hydrometallurgical treatment, potentially involving solvent extraction and electrowinning to produce high-purity copper cathode. The project has therefore been presented as a possible revival of commercial copper mining at Apliki; however, the timing of construction and the resumption of mining remain dependent on the completion of technical studies, financing, permitting and final investment decisions. It is consequently more accurate to describe Apliki as an advanced redevelopment project rather than as a mine with a confirmed imminent production date. Ariana Resources continues to describe its Cypriot interests as copper-gold exploration and development projects.

A particularly unusual feature of Apliki is its geopolitical setting. The mine lies close to the United Nations Buffer Zone, commonly known as the Green Line, which separates the territory controlled by the Republic of Cyprus from the northern part of the island that has remained outside the effective control of the Republic of Cyprus since 1974. The northern administration is recognised internationally only by Turkey. UNFICYP patrols the Buffer Zone, which extends for approximately 180 km across Cyprus. This proximity makes Apliki one of the more geopolitically distinctive prospective mining developments in the European Union.

Mineral List

29 valid minerals.

Rock Types Recorded