Proceedings Chapter

The carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb San Gregorio deposit (Colquijirca

District, Central Peru) as part of a high sulfidation epithermal system

FONTBOTÉ, Lluis, BENDEZÚ, Ronner

Abstract

The recently discovered world class San Gregorio Zn-Pb deposit in Central Peru, has formed
by high level carbonate replacement through very acid fluids coming from a high sulfidation
system related to a Tertiary volcanic neck, which produces also Au-Ag, Cu-Au and Zn-Pb-Ag
ores in other parts of the same district. To our knowledge San Gregorio is the first
"carbonate-hosted epithermal Zn-Pb high sulfidation deposit" recognized as such.

Reference
FONTBOTÉ, Lluis, BENDEZÚ, Ronner. The carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb San Gregorio deposit
(Colquijirca District, Central Peru) as part of a high sulfidation epithermal system. In: C.J.
Stanley et al. Mineral deposits: processes to processing, Proceedings of the 5th
biennial SGA meeting. Rotterdam : 1999. p. 495-498

Available at:
http://archive-ouverte.unige.ch/unige:29407

Disclaimer: layout of this document may differ from the published version.
In: C.J. Stanley et al. (eds. 1999), Mineral deposits: processes to processing, Balkema, Amsterdam, p. 495-498.
The carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb San Gregorio deposit (Colquijirca District,
central Peru) as part of a high sulfidation epithermal system

Lluís Fontboté and Ronner Bendezú*

Département de Minéralogie, Université de Genève, Rue des Maraîchers 13, 1211 Genève 4, Switzerland
* and Sociedad Minera Brocal, S.A., Lima, Perú.

ABSTRACT. The recently discovered world class San Gregorio Zn-Pb deposit in Central Peru, has formed by high
level carbonate replacement through very acid fluids coming from a high sulfidation system related to a Tertiary
volcanic neck, which produces also Au-Ag, Cu-Au and Zn-Pb-Ag ores in other parts of the same district. To our
knowledge San Gregorio is the first "carbonate-hosted epithermal Zn-Pb high sulfidation deposit" recognized as such.

1 INTRODUCTION
The genesis of epithermal high
sulfidation systems is relatively well
constrained. However, little attention has
been paid to their interaction with
carbonate rocks. This contribution makes
the case that epithermal high sulfidation
systems affecting carbonate rocks may
produce economic Zn-Pb ores displaying
an advanced argillic mineral association
which includes up to 5-10% of hypogene
alunite. We give evidences that the
recently discovered world class San
Gregorio Zn-Pb deposit in Central Peru,
has formed by high level carbonate
replacement through very acid fluids
coming from a high sulfidation system
related to a Tertiary volcanic neck, which
produces also Au-Ag, Cu-Au±Ag and
Zn-Pb-Ag ores in other parts of the same
district.

2 ORE DEPOSITS IN THE

COLQUIJIRCA DISTRICT
The San Gregorio deposit (Fig. 1),
discovered during 1994-1995 (70 Mt @
7,3 % Zn, 2.18 % Pb and 0.57 oz/t Ag,
Yaringaño et al., 1997), constitutes one
of the two largest base metal discoveries
of the last 20 years in Peru. It occurs 5
km south of the Zn-Pb-Ag Colquijirca
deposit (Fig 1, Lindgren, 1935,
McKinstry, 1936, Lehne, 1990), a main
silver producer in Peru. Between San
Gregorio and Colquijirca, the Marcapunta sulfidation epithermal deposits, (Marcapunta Norte
volcanic complex (11.5±0.4 Ma, Vidal et al., 1984) and Sur and Smelter, Fig. 1, Vidal et al., 1984,
hosts disseminated Au-Ag (central part of Vidal et al., 1997).
Marcapunta) and massive Cu-As-Au-Ag high
Table 1 Main mineralogical and elemental components of typical ore and host rock samples at San Gregorio (DDH 22G-95)
showing an ideal replacing path from relictic dolostone to "sulfide rock" or "high-silica sulfide rock" with intermediate formation
of massive Fe-Zn rhodochrosite. The lost of ignition (LOI) is an indirect indicator of sulfide (PBR-12, 15, 25 and 27) and carbonate
(PBR-17 to 22) content.
Sample/ Zn Pb Ag (ppm Cu As (ppm SiO2 Al2O3 Fe2O2 MnO MgO CaO LOI Mineral Association
depth (m) ICP) (ppm (XRD)
XRF% XRF% ICP) XRF% XRF% XRF% XRF% XRF% XRF% %
ICP)

PBR-15 35* 3.57 > 100 14.9 274 20.61 7.98 11.20 0.01 0.01 0.07 19.9 qz, kaol, alunite
3
"Sulfide rock" 236.15 sl, py -mc, gn
PBR-27 25* 2.82 <0.2 13.8 247 38.23 14.49 2.47 0.03 0.08 0.32 15.1 qz, kaol, alunite
0
383.40 sl, gn, py-mc
PBR-26 33* 4.99 <0.2 3.1 111 49.29 7.70 2.98 0.04 0.03 0.15 9.43 alunite, kaol, qz
"High silica - 192.00 sl, gn, py-mc
sulfide rock" PBR-25 6.28 0.70 <0.2 8.4 82 67.67 8.87 2.14 0.06 0.10 0.47 8.54 qz, kaol, alunite
372.45 sl, py-mc
PBR-17 6.84 0.49 <0.2 1 19 2.76 0.57 15.28 33.94 2.82 0.96 31.7 Fe-Zn
4 rhodocrosite
Massive Fe-Zn 264.10
rhodocrosite PBR-19 7.89 0.54 <0.2 1.2 85 0.81 0.52 16.23 32.97 2.65 1.53 31.0 Fe-Zn
5 rhodocrosite
301.70
PBR-18 0.03 0.07 n.a n.a. n.a. 11.53 2.77 1.78 0.20 11.4 27.6 35.0 dolomite, qz
0 4 5
Relictic 290.45
dolostone PBR-22 0.30 0.03 n.a n.a. n.a. 1.14 0.54 1.16 0.86 16.2 23.6 42.9 dolomite, (qz)
0 5 1
324.65
* Out of range.
rock," Table 1). A few intercalations of relictic
3 SAN GREGORIO original host rock have been preserved within the
main mineralized area and display dolomitic
Fig. 2 shows a schematic cross section of the composition (relictic dolostone in Table 1). Minor
Colquijirca District in which the San Gregorio bodies of massive Fe-Zn rhodocrosite occur at the
deposit occurs at its southern part. The San transition between relictic dolostone and sulfide
Gregorio deposit is made up by stacked several rocks (Table 1). The zoning "sulfide rock"-
tens of meters thick orebodies (up to 15% Zn and >massive Fe-Zn rhodocrosite->relictic dolostones
5% Pb) replacing a 300 m thick carbonate is controlled by rapid pH increase as very acid
sequence and with at least up to 1000 m (NS) and fluids are neutralized by carbonate rocks. That the
fluid responsible for the formation of the advanced
600 m (EW) lateral extension. Lithostratigraphic argillic alteration of the "sulfide rock" was
correlations based on drill cores and supported by extremely acid is also indicated by the fact that it
paleontological determinations (A. Pardo in was able to transport and precipitate up to 15%
Bendezú, 1997) and trace element analyses Al2O3 in originally carbonate rocks poor in
indicate that the host carbonate rocks belong
entirely to the Upper Triassic-Lower Jurassic aluminium.
Pucará Group (and not in part to the Lower In the upper part of San Gregorio occurs a
Tertiary Pocobamba Formation as proposed by cap consisting of a silicified cover up to several
Vidal et al. (1997). tens of meters thick and a tabular body consisting
The carbonate rocks are extensively of massive alunite, kaolinite and quartz with
altered. The richest ores are contained in what thickness of up to 50 m. Its morphology and the
locally is called "sulfide rock" which is the result presence of relictic "sulfide rock" cut by alunite-
of complete decarbonatization of Pucará kaolinite veins suggest that it has been formed by
dolostones and limestones and development of an steam-heated acid waters and that is superimposed
advanced argillic assemblage, basically quartz, on the main mineralization phase. This cap
alunite, and kaolinite, with more than 30% of total displays high Ag and, in places, Bi values.
sulfides (Table 1). The ore mineralogy is simple
and extremely fine-grained, generally limited to
sphalerite, galena, and very minor marcasite 4 ZONING AT THE DISTRICT SCALE
commonly less than 40 µm, giving the
macroscopic appearance of an unconsolidated The cross section of Fig. 2 and Table 2 show that
detrital rock. In places, the quartz together with, at district scale, north and south of the epithermal
less abundant, alunite and kaolinite amount above high sulfidation Au-Ag deposit of Marcapunta, a
75% by weight of the rock ("high silica sulfide similar zoning in terms of alteration and
mineralization exists. Massive enargite-pyrite
bodies (Smelter) characterized by strong
alunitization and silicification replace Miocene
volcanic and Eocene carbonate rocks directly
north of the volcanic vent. Typical copper grades
range from 1 to 4 %, and Au contents may be as
high as 2 ppm for tens of meters of thickness. Zn
and Pb are typically low but in small areas can
amount up to 6% and 0.5%, respectively, with
increasing Zn-Pb grades with greater distance
from the Marcapunta center. These ores show a
complete transition to the north into the
Colqujjirca Zn-Pb-Ag mantos, hosted by Eocene
Calera limestones. At Colquijirca the alteration is
not as strong as in San Gregorio but our survey
reveals the ubiquitous presence of argillic
assemblages in the mantos with kaolinite and
dickite, and in places also alunite. Ongoing
drilling shows that between Marcapunta and San
Gregorio massive enargite-pyrite bodies occur in
the Eocene Shuco Conglomerate. Preliminary
sulfur and lead isotope determinations suggest a
common metal source for the whole district and a
sulfur budget dominated by magmatic sulfur, with
in San Gregorio significant contribution of an
isotopically lighter source.
Pb deposits of San Gregorio and Colquijirca, as well
as additional prospects presently being explored, have
a common genesis in the sense that they constitute
different responses to very acid fluids from a same
high sulfidation system. The differences in paragenesis
and alteration are essentially controlled by host rock
lithology and the distance from the center of the
system, where the disseminated Au-Ag mineralization
of Marcapunta and the massive-enargite bodies of
Smelter occur.
San Gregorio is to our knowledge the first
"carbonate-hosted epithermal Zn-Pb high sulfidation
deposit" recognized as such. It can be suggested that a
complete transition between Zn-Pb ores formed by
high temperature carbonate replacement (e.g. Cerro de
Pasco) and at epithermal conditions (e.g. San
Gregorio) exists. In Peru, other examples of Zn-Pb
deposits and districts which possibly are parts of
carbonate-hosted epithermal high sulfidation systems
are Matagente, Azulcocha, Cercapuquio, and
Hualgayoc. The exploration potential of the model
presented in this work should be emphasized, as
possibly other "San Gregorios" occurring near to high
sulfidation systems may have been overlooked. This is
in part because the Zn-Pb minerals may be almost not
recognizable with the naked eye or even with a hand
lens as it is the case in San Gregorio.

Table 2 Upper part: ore grades of main mineralized sections

in the ore deposits of the Colquijirca District (mine assays). ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Lower part: typical elemental composition of selected ore
samples. We thank Ing. J.A. Proaño and Sociedad Minera Brocal,
S.A. for the continuous support to this research project. This
work has been done in the frame of a grant of the Swiss
San Marcapunta Smelter Colquijirca National Science Foundation (FN.20-054150.98)
Gregorio
DDH 13 G SD11 CM5- SP1-194
580 REFERENCES
Depth m 187.0-250.0 92.8-151.0 172.0-181 123.5-149.5
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Thickness m 63.0 58.2 9.0 26.0
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