Transient electromagnetic surveys in the Okiep district

Abstract

In the Okiep District early miners produced massive sulfide ore from some five deposits. Some of these deposits later contributed to the reserves of disseminated ore mined during modern times. It is unreasonable to assume that all of the massive sulfide bodies present within the area are intersected by the erosion surface and thus were discovered by the early miners. Consequently, blind massive sulfide ore bodies could be present and may have large quantities of disseminated ore associated with them. The transient electromagnetic method is ideally suited to exploring for massive sulfide bodies, and six test surveys were carried out at various sites in the district. Four of these surveys were unsuccessful whereas, at the remaining two sites, excellent anomalies were recorded. At Ezelsfontein East Extension an anomaly was recorded indicative of a massive sulfide body at shallow depth and of generally flat attitude. This anomaly has a time constant of 15 ms and the interpreted body was confirmed by a limited diamond drilling program. A deep, flat‐lying conductor was interpreted from the TEM results at Fonteintjie West Prospect. This anomaly, with a time constant of 0.6 ms, has limited size. Diamond drilling confirmed the presence of submassive to massive sulfide mineralization at this locale. Neither of these two drilled prospects had economic mineralization.