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Alto Chicama, Lagunas Norte

Peru
Main commodities: Au
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The Alto Chicama Project and the Lagunas Norte high-sulphidation epithermal gold deposit, are Clickonimagefordetails.
located in the Quiruvilca district, Santiago de Chuco Province, in Northern Peru, roughly half way
betweentheYanacochaandPierinadeposits.Itisapproximately90kilometreseastofthecoastaltown
ofTrujillo(#Location:757'9"S,7814'48"W).

TheAltoChicamaDistrictispartofa290kmlonggold-richbeltcontainingworldclassdepositssuch
astheYanacochamineinthenorth,andthePierinaminetothesouthincentraltonorthernPeru.This
goldrichbeltislocatedinthewesternCordilleraofthePeruvianAndes,betweentheCoastalBatholith
tothewest,andtheMaraonfoldandthrustbelttotheeast.

Regional Setting

Fordetailsoftheregionalsetting,seetheseparatePeruvian Andes Cu-Au Provincerecord.

TheMesozoicunitsofnorthernPerulargelycomprisesedimentaryrocksoftheAndeancycle(Mgard,
1987). From the Tithonian, the Western platform and trough of Peru was dominated by the subsiding
Chicama basin (Jaillard and Jacay 1989), where up to 2500 m of deep marine shale and intercalated
subordinatethinsandstonebedsoftheChicamaFormationweredeposited.InthefollowingBerriasian
to Valanginian, a gradual regression from deep marine to shallower siliciclastic sedimentation took
place,producingasequenceofquartzsandstonesderivedfromtheGuyanaandBrasiliashields(Moulin
1989). These fluvio-deltaic sandstones are represented by the Lower Cretaceous Chim Formation
(Benavides-Cceres1956;JaillardandJacay1989).Marinetransgressionsandregressionsdominated
the Valanginian, during the deposition of the Santa-Carhuaz Formation (Benavides-Cceres 1956)
whichiscomposedofalternatingsandyandshalybeds.CarbonatesandblackshalesoftheChulecand
Pariatambo Formations respectively, represent a progressively deepening depositional environment,
and overlie the Santa-Carhuaz Formation. The western border of the Chicama basin was the site of
intense volcanic activity during the Aptian, producing the Casma Group (Atherton et al., 1985; Soler
1991), before the cessation of marine sedimentation and volcanism in the Albian, during a dextral
transpressive event in the arc (Soler and Bonhomme 1990). This volcanic activity was followed by
voluminousintrusiveactivityandtheemplacementofthe100to55MaCoastalBatholith(Cobbinget al.,
1981;Soler1991).
DuringthelateCretaceous,theinferredoffshoreMariana-typesubductiontothewestwasreplacedby
the current Andean-type subduction (Benavides-Cceres 1999), resulting in a tectonic inversion and
intense compressive deformation which gave rise to the Maraon Fold and Thrust Belt (Benavides-
Cceres1999).ThedeformedMesozoicrockswereunconformablyoverlainbytheEocenetoMiocene
Calipuy Group volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks (Cosso and Jan, 1967; Wilson 1975; Rivera et al.,
2005; Montgomery 2012). Volcanism was terminated during the late Miocene along much of northern
andcentralPeru,attributedtotheonsetofflatslabtectonicsalongthePeruvianmargindueentryofthe
aseismicNazcaridgeandoceanicIncaplateauintothesubductionzone(Gutscheret al.,1999;Hampel
2002).

Deposit Geology

ThebasementatLagunasNorteispredominantlyMesozoicpeliticandsiliciclasticrocksoftheChicamaandChimFormationsrespectively
(Reyes 1980), which have been thrusted and folded into NW striking east-verging folds of the Maraon Fold and Thrust Belt (Benavides-
Cceres 1999). These rocks are weakly metamorphosed to slate and quartzite. The Lower Miocene volcanic rocks of the Calipuy Group
were unconformably deposited over the folded Mesozoic basement. Gold mineralization is hosted by the siliciclastic rocks of the Chim
Formationandtheoverlyingvolcanicstrata.Thestratigraphyoftheserocksonthedepositaareaisasfollows(afterCerpaet al.,2013):
Jurassic Chicama Formation-whichisexposedtothewestandnorthoftheminingoperations.Thethicknessisunknownlocally,buthas
beenestimatedtobeupto1500mthick40kmtothesouth(CossoandJan1967;JaillardandJacay1989).Itcomprisesasuccessionof
darkcarbonaceousshaleandsiltstonewithoccasionalthinbedsoffine-grainedsandstone,andhasbeenweaklymetamorphosedtoslate,
withanintensecleavagesubparalleltobedding.ThecontactwiththeoverlyingChimFormationisagradualtransition,characterisedbyan
increasingabundanceofquartziteintercalations.TheChicamaFormationisnotexposedinthedepositarea,butclastsofslateintheDafne
breccia(seebelow)arepossiblyderivedfromthisunit.
Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Chim Formation - which is the main host to mineralisation at Lagunas Norte, comprises a
compositionally mature quartz sandstone, typically containing 95% silica, with occasional coal beds, and scarce siltstone and shale
intercalations. It has undergone weak metamorphism, with some recrystallisation and cementation of quartz grains to form quartzite. The
thicknessoftheformationisestimatedtobebetween450and600mintheLagunasNortearea(Benavides-Cceres1956).
Miocene Calipuy Group - which is composed of a sequence of volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks (Cosso and Jan 1967; Rivera et al.,
2005;Montgomery2012)separatedfromtheMesozoicbasementoveranangularunconformity.AtLagunasNorteisissubdividedintothe
following,fromthebase:
Quesquenda unit, which is related to an eruptive centre 4 km to the north of the deposit (Rivera et al., 2005) and is exposed in the
easternmostsectionsofthedeposit,whereitcomprises>150mofandesiticpyroclasticandvolcaniclasticrocks,withinterstratifiedlithic-rich
tuffaceousdepositscontainingcarbonizedwood.Itisinterpretedtobetheproductofpyroclasticeruptionsinterbeddedwithlahardeposits.
Dafne unit is composed of a series of breccias in the western part of the deposit area. Overall, the breccia body takes the form of a
subvertical, downward tapering cone, and in plan view, a NW elongated ellipsoid that has an up to 1 km long axis. It cuts the Mesozoic
basementandhasbeeninterpretedtorepresentadiatreme.Fourmainlithofaciesassociationsarerecognised,namely,the
i).Diatreme margin-generallycomprisingclast-supportedmonomictandpolymictbrecciaswithinarockflourorjuvenilevolcanicmatrix,
and ubiquitous hydrothermal cement. No evidence of multiple brecciation breccia has been recorded. These breccias have a coarse
stratificationparalleltothediatrememargin.Threemonomicticbrecciadomainshavbeenrecognisedcontainingquartzite,siltstoneortan-
colored hydrothermal quartz clasts (silice parda), respectively. The angular to subangular clasts indicate jigsaw to slightly clast rotated
breccias. The polymictic breccias include subangular-rotated clasts of quartzite and siltstone with a rock flour matrix and cement of
hydrothermalquartzand,atdepth,pyrite.Thislithofacieshasagradualtransitiontothewallrockthroughjigsawtextures,angularclastsand
locallymonomicticbrecciachimneys.Hydrothermalquartzandpyritecementdominatesthematrix.
 ii).Main body, which is volumetrically the most important lithofacies, occupying the central section of the diatreme. It largely consists of
polymictic, matrix-supported breccias with quartzite, siltstone, slate and juvenile volcanic (fiamme-like whispy shapes) clasts, as well as
occasionalsilice pardahydrothermalquartzfragments.Theclastsaresubangulartosubrounded,withnoapparentinternalorganisationor
sortingofclasts,setinamatrixofrockflourlargelyderivedfromsiltstoneandshaleandfine-grainedreworkedvolcanicmaterial.
iii).Crater lithofacies association facies occur in the upper central part of the diatreme, and include polymictic, unstratified and massive
breccias, distinguished by large (up to 1.7 m diameter) rounded to subrounded quartzite and andesite blocks with striated clast surfaces,
accompaniedbysmallerclastsrockflourandjuvenilevolcanicmaterial.
iv).Apron lithofacies,locatedinupperperipheralsectionsofthediatreme,characterisedbyanintercalationofpolymicticandmonomictic
clast-supportedbrecciaswithrockflourandvolcanicmatrix.Thisfacieshascoarsebedding,or'tephrastratification'(Lorenz2003).Clastsof
quartzite and siltstone are subrounded to rounded and locallytabular,withcommonclastimbricationandwidelydistributedfiammeinthe
mostperipheralpolymicticpartsofthebreccias.Thesepolymicticbrecciasareobviousupto1kmnorthofthediatreme.Theclastsizeinthis
unitdecreaseswithincreasingdistancefromthediatreme.
Josefa unit,whichisissub-dividedintotwosubunits,namely,the
i).Josefa diatreme, which is 45 by 30 m in plan view, and was emplaced in the eastern part of the deposit in the Josefa area. It has a
downwardtaperingconeshape,butincontrasttothelargerDafnediatreme,nosiltstone,shaleorcarbonaceousmaterialispresent.Quartz
crystals up to 5 mm in diameter occur in the largely juvenile volcanic matrix. The breccia of the diatreme are classified using the same
scheme as for the Dafne diatreme, with diatreme margin lithofacies of monomictic clast-supported breccias containing angular quartzite
clastsandquartzcrystalsinavolcanicmatrix,alsocontainingquartz-alunitecement.Themain bodyofthebrecciaispolymicticandmatrix
supported, with subangular to subrounded and juvenile clasts and quartz crystals in a tuffaceous matrix, which as in the marginal facies,
includesquartz-alunitecement.Thecrater lithofaciesintheupperpartofthediatremeiscontainslarge,upto80cmindiameterquartzite
blockssetinatuffaceousmatrixwithabundantquartzcrystalsandjuvenilevolcanicclasts.Theapron lithofaciesisonlypartlypreservedon
thesouthernmarginofthediatreme,whereitoccursisaseriesofcrudelystratifiedbeds.
ii).Volcanic and volcano-sedimentary,successionwhichoverliesthediatremeandisinferredtobelargelyrelatedtotheeruptiveactivity
fromthesamediatreme.Itiscomposedoftwoprincipalunits,whichcropoutatJosefaandAlexaaswellasatDafne,wheretheyoverliethe
apronlithofaciesbreccias,andaregenerallyaffectedbyadvancedargillicalteration.Thelowerofthetwoisthequartz feldspar phyric (QFP)
unit characterised by monomictic breccias containing quartzite clasts, which increase in size towards the Josefa diatreme. This breccia is
overlainbyapyroclasticflowdepositwithsmall(<2cm)alteredpumicefragmentsandupto5mmquartzcrystals.Thispyroclasticdepositis
overlainbylithiclapillituffcontainingsmallquartzcrystalsandrareaccretionarylapilli.TheQFPisoverlainbyadacitic unit,whichcomprises
aseriesofpyroclasticandvolcaniclasticdepositswithpumiceandlithicfragmentsbutnoquartzcrystals.Theseare,inturn,overlainbyan
ashtuffwithonlyscarcelithicfragments.Theserockshavebeensubjectedtoadvancedargillicalteration.
Shulcahuanga unit, which comprises porphyritic andesite lavas and andesitic to dacitic domes that are exposed around Cerro
Shulcahuangatothewestandsouthofthedeposit.TheandesiticlavasoverlietheDafneunitandhavebeenweaklychlorite-smectite/illite
altered.Twomainlithologicalassociationsaremapped,namely,
i).Andesitas Azules,anandesitewithapaleblue-greenhueimposedbyclayalteration,characterisedbyhornblendephenocrystsinafine
grainedaphaniticgroundmass,whichoccursasdykesthatcrosscutthesouthernmarginoftheDafnediatreme.
ii).Shulcahuanga dome, and adjacent lava flows to the east of the deposit, which has a porphyritic texture with plagioclase, biotite, and
hornblende phenocrysts. These rocks have characteristic prominent flow banding (Macassi, 2005), and are dated at 16.8 to 17.3 Ma
(40Ar/39Arbiotiteandhornblende;Montgomery2012).

Alteration and Mineralisation

HydrothermalalterationatLagunasNortevariesaccordingtothehostrockcompositionsandtextures.Theuppervolcanic-hostedsection
of the deposit, is characterised by zonation pattern typical of high-sulphidation systems (e.g., Simmons et al., 2005), where a nucleus of
vuggyquartzissurroundedbyquartz-aluniteanddickite-kaolinitealunitezones,indicatingacidicfluidsthatwereprogressivelyneutralised
duringreactionwiththehostrock.Incontrastalterationofthequartziteissubtleanddifficulttorecognise,althoughkaoliniteand,inmore
silty units, pyrophyllite have been recognised by spectral instruments. Four hydrothermal stages have been defined. Gold was introduced
duringstages1and3,thelatterbeingtheprincipalpulseofmineralisation.Minoradditionalgoldwasintroducedduringstage4.Supergene
oxidationtodepthsofupto80mbelowthecurrentsurfacemadetheoreamenabletoheapleachextraction(Cerpaet al.,2013).
Stage I - Early hydrothermal-characterisedbyfine-grainedyellowishtotan-colouredquartz-pyriteaggregateswithminorrutile,locally
referredtoassilice parda.ThisassemblageisonlyfoundintheChimFormation,whereitgenerallyoccursalonganetworkofpre-existing
fractures,bestdevelopedinsiltylayers,butalsoformsthecementofsmallfaultcontrolledmonomicticbrecciabodies(Cerpaet al.,2013).
BetweenJosefaandDafnediatremes,andinthesouthernpartoftheJosefazone,silice pardaisaccompaniedbychalcopyriteanddigenite.
Although gold is not visible to SEM or optical microscopy, mineralogical studies show it to be associated with pyrite, probably as solid
solution or as nanoparticles in the pyrite. The presence of silice parda clasts in the Dafne diatreme, suggest the first mineralisation stage
preceded diatreme emplacement. Montgomery (2012) reports an age of paragenetically early alunite hosted in the Chim Formation of
17.360.14Ma,providingaminimumageforthisstage.34Sonadigenite-pyritepairfromthisstagegaveamaximumfluidtemperatureof
360C(Hubberten,1980).
Stage II - phreatic and phreatomagmatic-TheDafneandJosefadiatremebreccialithofaciessuggesttheywereformedbyphreaticand
phreatomagmaticactivitywhichCerpaet al.(2013)defineasthesecondhydrothermalstage.Thisstagegeneratedgroundpreparationfor
subsequentmineralisationbyfracturingtheadjacentrockandalsoactedashosttoportionoftheore.Mineralisationwithinthediatremesis
controlledbythepermeability,whichinturniscontrolledbymatrixtypeandabundance,type,shapeandsizeofclasts.Aminimumagefor
thebrecciationeventsisindicatebytheoldestalunitewithintheoverlyingvolcanicsequenceof17.050.12Ma(Montgomery2012).
Stage III - Main mineralisation-Thebulkofthegolddepositedduringthisstageisnotopticallyvisible,andiscontainedwithinpyrite.This
mineralisationandtheassociatedalterationisdifficulttodetectinthehostquartzite,althoughcoarsealunitefracturefillingwithassociated
pyriteandenargiteisobservableatdepthsof>80mbelowthepresentsurface.Inaddition,spectralsensorsareabletodetectdisseminated
kaoliniteinquartzitehosts.InthecoreofLagunasNorte,pyrophylliteisfoundwithinthemoresiltybedsoftheChimFormation,whereas
kaoliniteoccursontheperipheryofthedeposit.Wherecoalispresent,sulphideassemblagesthatincludepyrite,stibniteandarsenopyrite
arelocallyobserved(Cerpaet al.,2013).
Alterationpatternsarelithologicallycontrolledinbothdiatremes.WithintheinternalsectionsoftheDafnebreccia,dickite-kaolinitealteration
affectedjuvenilefragments,andfracturecontrolledsilicificationislocallypresent,whilethemarginsareintenselysilicifiedwithminoralunite.
The matrix composition determines the alteration intensity and assemblages in the apron lithofacies. Where the matrix is predominantly
volcanic, quartz-alunite is the dominant alteration assemblage, whilst in beds with a carbonaceous matrix, the juvenile fragments are
preferentiallyalteredtoalunite-dickite-kaolinite(Cerpaet al.,2013).
TheJosefabrecciasarepervasivelyalteredtoquartz-aluniteandjuvenilefragmentshavecommonlybeenreplacedbypyriteandalunite.In
thevolcano-sedimentarylithofaciesatDafne,JosefaandAlexa,andtheJosefamarginalfaciesandtheDafnebreccia,thealterationpattern
istypicalofhigh-sulphidationepithermalmineralisation.Vuggyquartzdistributioniscontrolledbysmalleast-westorientedfaultsandbythe
permeabilityofvolcanicorbrecciafacies.Withintheoverlyingvolcanicpackage,vuggyquartzisbestdevelopedinpumice-andcrystal-rich
pyroclasticflowdepositswherepumicefragmentsandfeldsparphenocrystswereleachedandthevolcanicmatrixwascompletelyreplaced
by residual quartz. The vuggy quartz zone is surrounded by an assemblage of quartz-alunite-pyrite alteration, where alunite replaced
feldsparsandpumiceclasts,andthegroundmasshasbeenreplacedbyfine-grainedquartzandpyrite.Althoughpyritehasgenerallybeen
oxidised,itispreservedwithaluniteinsomesilicifiedstrataatAlexa,whereasatJosefa,itoccurstogetherwithrutile(Cerpaet al.,2013).
Thematrixofthebasalbrecciaofthevolcanicpilehasbeenaffectedbypervasivequartz-alunitekaolinite-dickitealteration.Disseminated
alunitefromthevolcanicJosefaunitalteredbythismainmineralisationstagehasbeendatedat17.00.22Ma(40Ar/39Ar),consistentwiththe
agerangeof16.7to17.1Mainferredforthemainhydrothermalactivity(Montgomery2012).Theandesiticvolcanicrockssurroundingthe
deposithavebeenaffectedbyweaktomoderateargillicalterationwhereillitepartlyreplaceshornblendeandquartz-chloriteveinletshave
beenobserved(Cerpaet al.,2013).
Cerpaet al.(2013)haveshownthatcoarsealunitefromthisstage,whichisintexturalequilibriumwithpyriteandenargite,has34Svalues
of24.8to29.4and18OSO4valuesof6.8to13.9,consistentwithH2Sasthedominantsulphurspeciesinthemostlymagmaticfluidand
constraining the fluid composition to low pH (0 to 2) and logfO2 of -28 to -30. Alunite-pyrite sulphur isotope thermometry records
 temperaturesof190to260C;thehighesttemperaturescorrespondingtosamplesfromnearthediatremes.
Stage IV: late-stage alteration - is only accompanied by modest gold mineralisation. It is characterised by white to yellowish alunite
occurringasfine-grainedandmassiveaggregateswhichformthecementtolocalfaultbrecciasandfillsthinfracturesinChimFormation
quartzite.Pyriteoccursisintexturalequilibriumwiththisalunite,whilsttracesofkaoliniteand,atAlexa,diasporearegenerallypresentin
addition. The massive alunite crosscuts pyrophyllite-altered siltstone beds and has overgrown coarse-grained alunite. Barite, rutile, drusy
quartzandlatenativesulphurfillingopenspacesinthevolcanicrocksrepresentthefinaloccurrenceofhydrothermalactivity.Fracturesfilled
withbaritearefoundinthequartziteatAlexaandJosefa.TheyoungestalunitereportedbyMontgomery(2012)is16.450.28Mainterpreted
byCerpaet al.(2013)toconstrainhydrothermalstageIV.
Cerpaet al.(2013)obtained18OSO4valuesfromstageIValunitethatvarybetween11.5and11.7whichtheyinterprettoindicatethatthe
fluid was magmatic, supported by the isotopic composition of barite (34S = 27.1 to 33.8 and 18OSO4 = 8.1 to 12.7). The 34Spy-alu
isotopethermometryrecordstemperaturesof210to280C,withthehighestvaluesconcentratedaroundtheJosefadiatreme.
Stage V: Supergene oxidation - Lagunas Norte has undergone extensive supergene oxidation to depths of 80 m below the current
surface, to produce hematite, goethite and locally jarosite and scorodite. Iron oxides are mainly found as cement to tectonic and
hydrothermalbreccias,aswellasonfracturesurfaces.Oxidationliberatedthegold,makingtreatmentcyanideleachingeconomicallyviable
(Cerpaet al.,2013).

Attheendof2002,onthebasisof120000metresofdiamonddrilling,in445diamonddrillholes,ona50metrecentresgrid,thedeclared
resourceatLagunasNortewas:
123.5Mt@1.83g/tAu,for226tonnes(7.3Moz)ofgold,including192tonnes(6.2Moz)inoxidesand34tonnesofgoldinsulphides.

AtDecember31,2010,orereserveandmineralresourcefigureswere(BarrickGoldAnnualReport2010):
Proven+probablereserves-218Mt@0.95g/tAu,for205tonnes(6.62Moz)ofgold;
Measuredresource-1.23Mt@0.61g/tAu,for0.75tonnes(0.024Moz)ofgold;
Indicatededresource-40.92Mt@0.58g/tAu,for22.8tonnes(0.732Moz)ofgold;
Inferredresource-8.27Mt@0.46g/tAu,for3.64tonnes(0.117Moz)ofgold.

AtDecember31,2015,remainingorereserveandmineralresourcefigureswere(BarrickGoldAnnualReport2015):
Proven+probablereserves-63.641Mt@1.82g/tAu,5.17g/tAg,for116tonnesofgold;
Measuredresource-2.092Mt@1.37g/tAu,3.82g/tAg,for2.86tonnesofgold;
Indicatededresource-35.461Mt@1.36g/tAu,3.74g/tAg,for48.27tonnesofgold;
Inferredresource-1.692Mt@0.88g/tAu,0.93g/tAg,for1.5tonnesofgold.
Note:reservesareadditionaltoresources.

This summary is largely drawn/paraphrased from Cerpa et al. (2013), and to a lesser degree from Araneda, R., et al. 2003 - Alto Chicama
Project, Quiruvilca District La Libertad Department, Peru; ProEXPLO 2003 Conference

The most recent source geological information used to prepare this summary was dated: 2013. Record last updated: 30/9/2016
This description is a summary from published sources, the chief of which are listed below.
Copyright Porter GeoConsultancy Pty Ltd. Unauthorised copying, reproduction, storage or dissemination prohibited.

References&AdditionalInformation
References to this deposit in the PGC Literature Collection:
Cerpa, L.M., Bissig, T., Kyser, K., McEwan, C., Macassi, A. and Rios, H.W.,2013-LithologiccontrolsonmineralizationattheLagunas
Nortehigh-sulfidationepithermalgolddeposit,northernPeru:in Mineralium Depositav.48,pp.653-673.

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