Gold mineralization in Bubin area, Gilgit-Baltistan, Northern Areas, Pakistan

Abstract

The complex history of crustal evolution and the diverse geological history of Northern areas of Pakistan (i.e., Indian Plate, Kohistan-Ladakh Island arc, and Eurasian Plate) made the area most favorable for economic mineral deposits such as gold and copper. Sulfide-bearing mineralized rock samples from Ladakh terrane are analyzed for gold, silver, and base metals. Bulk samples analyses for gold, silver, and base metal concentrations demonstrate that almost all samples have variable amounts of gold, silver, and base metals. In these samples, gold concentration up to 95 ppm was found in chalcopyrite, galena-rich mineralized quartz veins, and their alteration products. The mineralized veins are few meters to 10 m wide and are associated with dioritic rocks. Dominant minerals in the mineralized zone include galena, chalcopyrite, limonite, pyrite, and malachite. The enrichment and depletion of different types of minerals suggest that the magmatic hydrothermal fluids played a key role in copper and lead mineralization with gold concentration. Study of ore minerals in these samples shows association with sulfide-bearing alterations in shear zones.