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Cerro Verde, Santa Rosa, Cerro Negro

Peru
Main commodities: Cu Mo
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ThecontiguousCerro VerdeandSanta RosadepositsandtheneighbouringCerro Negroprospectare Clickonimagefordetails.
locatedinsouthernPeru,~15kmSSWofthecityofArequipa(#Location:1632'4"S,7135'38"W).

These deposits represent the northernmost economic hydrothermal system in the 800 km long, upper
Paleocene to early Eocene porphyry Cu-Mo belt of the central Andes of southern Peru and northern
Chile.

The Cerro Verde and Santa Rosa deposits outcrop at altitudes of 2680 to 2750 m on a subplanar
pedimentwhichwaserodedintotheolder"LaCaldera"surfacethatisapproximately200mhigher.

Muchofthemineralisationinthethreedepositsisassociatedwitha"CalderaComplex",aclusterof61
to68MagranitoidintrusionsrepresentingasegmentofthePeruvianCoastalbatholith.TheSantaRosa
depositishostedentirelybyPaleogenegranitoidunits,whileCerroVerdestraddlesthecontactbetween
these granitoids and the enclosing Mesoproterozoic amphibolite facies metasedimentary and
metaigneousrocksthatbelongtotheArequipaMassif,whichconstitutesmuchoftheAndeanbasement
insouthwesternPeruandnorthernmostChile.

Eachofthedepositsisassociatedwithasteepwalledstockofhypabyssalquartz-andfeldspar-phyric
rockwithasurfaceareaofapproximately0.12sq.km,describedasa"dacitemonzoniteporphyry"or
"quartz-bearing monzonite porphyry" with an overall dacitic composition. They are the youngest
significantintrusivesinthedistrict.

There is a strong northwest-southeast elongated fabric in the district, including the elongation of the
Santa Rosa hydrothermal system, the overall alignment of the Cerro Verde, Santa Rosa and Cerro
Negro deposits, breccia zones and vein copper deposits over distance of more than 7 km. This trend
parallels a system of NW trending and steep NE dipping regional faults in the region, possibly a
continuation or extension of the major Incapuquio fault system in the Cuajone-Quellaveco-Toquepala
districtsome115kmtothesoutheast.

Tourmaline cemented breccias are widespread in the Cerro Verde and Cerro Negro deposits only,
althoughsmallvolumesoftourmalinefree"silicabreccia"occuratallthreecentres.

HydrothermalalterationisdistributedoveraNWelongatedzonecoveringanareaof5x1.5kminthe
Cerro Verde-Santa Rosa district. Potassic and phyllic zones are enveloped by a propylitic halo. The
potassic zone is best developed at depth and is lithology dependent, with two varieties, the first
composed of orthoclase with lesser biotite (around 30%) and magnetite (<5%) in the intrusives; and
biotite-magnetiteinthePrecambrianmetamorphics.Adeeperlowgrade(0.1to0.15%Cu)sub-faciesof
thepotassiczonecomprisesmagnetite-biotite-albitealteration.

The potassic zones are surrounded in the upper parts of the deposits by quartz-sericite-pyrite phyllic
alterationwhichistheprincipalhosttoeconomicgrademineralisation,with,onaverage,5to7percent
sulphideandachalcopyrite:pyriteratioof0.3to0.7.

In most parts of these three deposits, the main zone of supergene chalcocite mineralisation is very irregular and discontinuous. At Cerro
Verdethereareatleasttwosulphideenrichmentblankets:anolder,around15mthickhorizon,discontinuouslypreserved;andayounger,
more localised, but thicker zone located within a large body of tourmaline breccia, juxtaposed upon hypogene mineralisation. This lower
blanketisonaverage60to80mthick,butincreasesto100m,andlocallyreaches150minthemaintourmalinebrecciabody.Ingeneral,
thesupergenesulphidesthintothenorthandNE.ThesinglepreservedblanketatSantaRosarangesfrom20to45minthickness,withan
underlyingtransitionalwherechalcopyriteispartiallyreplacedbychalcocite,covelliteandbornite.

The chalcocite blankets at both Cerro Verde and Santa Rosa are overlain by the brochantite subzone of the oxide zone, in which minor
chrysocollaoccursasveinscuttingabrochantitestockwork.Chalcedony,antleriteandmalachiteareminorconstituents.

The oxides are overlain by the upper most part of the profile, the leached zone,whichaverages70minthickness,butlocallypersiststo
depthsof250mintheCerroVerdedeposit.Hematite,goethite,andminorjarositearethemostabundantmineralsandarebestdeveloped
inthebrecciazone.

ThereservesatCerroVerdeandSantaRosacomprised(Chanet al.,2003):
supergeneore-331Mt@0.52%Cu,and
mostlyhypogeneore-464Mt@0.61%Cu.

Remainingproved+probablereservesatCerroVerde,asatDecember31,2011(Freeport-McMoRan,2012)were:
millore-3.752Gt@0.39%Cu,0.015%Mo,1.67g/tAg(Cu-86.0%;Mo-54.4%recovery);
crushedleachore-146.0Mt@0.50%Cu(79.8%recovery);
ROMleachore-79Mt@0.21%Cu(41.0%recovery).

Remainingproved+probablereservesatCerroVerde,asatDecember31,2015(Freeport-McMoRan,2016)were:
3.856Gt@0.37%Cu,0.01%Mo.

Fordetailconsultthereference(s)listedbelow.

The most recent source geological information used to prepare this summary was dated: 2003.
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.