TITLE:
A Review on the Deposit Geology and Mineralization Mechanism of Tsumeb Polymetallic Deposit, Namibia
AUTHORS:
Regean Pumulo Pitiya, Lubang Jacob Peter
KEYWORDS:
Tsumeb, Otavi Mountain Land (OML), Mineralization, Damara Orogen, Neoproterozoic
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.8 No.11,
November
23,
2021
ABSTRACT: The Tsumeb polymetallic deposit of Otavi Mountain Land (OML), Namibia, is a prominent deposit of remarkable and complex mineral species with the accreditation of about 337 valid minerals. A total of 72 species of these minerals are of Tsumeb as the type of locality. The deposit was first prospected in 1893 by the South West Africa Company and it was mined from the year 1897 to 1996, yielding a total of about 30 Mt of ore with the grade of 10% Pb, 4.3% Cu, and 3.5% Zn along with ore minerals of As, Sb, Ag, Cd, and Au. The orebody also typifies the largest renowned single sulfidic accumulation of germanium (Ge). However, like many other deposits, the Tsumeb copper deposit has been exhausted. Hence, re-assessment of ore reserve and exploration is a crucial practice in the discovery of new mineral resources and occurrences. This practice requires extensive understanding of the geological characteristics and metallogenic mechanisms of the parent/exhausted ore deposit as a reference model. In this paper, we presented a summary description of the Tsumeb deposit (polymetallic Copper deposit) of the Otavi Mountain Land (OML), Namibia, with the main focus on the regional geological background, deposit geology and ore mineralization mechanism.