Breccia Pipes18 Aug 2025 07:40
Great article on Breccia Pipes:
Major Discoveries Linked to Breccia Pipes
Some of the world's largest copper and IOCG deposits have been discovered by following up on breccia pipe targets. The immense 1.2 billion tonne Los Sulfatos deposit in Chile, containing 1.46% copper, was discovered by drilling a 2 km deep tourmaline breccia pipe. This demonstrates the incredible size and grade potential of underlying systems linked to breccia pipes.
The Olympic Dam IOCG deposit in Australia, the world's largest uranium resource, was originally discovered through a hematite breccia pipe anomaly at surface. Further examples of major discoveries guided by breccia pipes include the Candelaria and Manto Verde copper mines in Chile, Ernest Henry in Australia, and the Aitu Gold Mine in China.
A common exploration strategy is to thoroughly investigate the area surrounding known breccia pipes, as the causative porphyry systems often have multiple apophyses producing discrete breccia bodies. For example, the Filo del Sol project in Argentina contains over 20 breccia targets, highlighting the camp-scale potential. While initially subtle at surface, breccia pipes provide critical mineralization vectors that have led to many of the world's largest copper and IOCG deposits once followed up by systematic drilling.
https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/the-importance-of-copper-breccias-for-mineral-exploration