Blog
MSc Dissertation - Week 5 - Channel Sampling
With the preparations of the last weeks completed and everything in place for my sampling campaign, I set out to take channel samples over almost 200m of strike length across the vein mineralisation. This was to test the grade and thickness continuity of the mineralisation and to correlate it with the structural measurements that I collected last week. Due to the available exposure in the... Read more
MSc Dissertation Placement - Week 4 - Structural Mapping in the Rudnik Deposit
The fourth week was mainly about structural mapping in different areas of the project, the identification of structural features, the measurement of their orientation and analysis of the association with mineralisation. The survey of the structural aspects of the mineralisation is especially important when dealing with hydrothermal vein deposits. This is because hydrothermal vein mineralisation... Read more
MSc Dissertation Placement - Week 3 - To Sample or not to Sample
The third week at Rudnik began late after my return from a great weekend in Belgrade. We began with an investigation for unexplored vein mineralisation in a distant area of the exploration license. Stream sediment sampling is a common technique for greenfields exploration, as it is a fast and inexpensive method which can direct further exploration efforts. Ideally a sediment sample is taken and... Read more
MSc Dissertation Placement – Week 2 – Developing a work plan
The second week started with a field trip to the Srednji Sturač mountain (meaning middle Sturač) to investigate sites of historic mining (so called ‘pinges’). The survey of these former mining sites is a common approach for exploration, but they are also important for underground development, as voids from old adits could pose geotechnical risks. The historic mining at Rudnik has been ongoing... Read more
MSc Dissertation Placement - Week 1 - Getting to grips with the geology.
My name is Richard, I am a German student of the Camborne School of Mines in the UK. As part of my MSc-degree in Mining Geology, I have to produce a dissertation that is associated with geological issues which are commonly encountered in the mining industry. Regarding the economical state of the industry at the moment, I count myself very lucky to have been given a ‘hands-on’ opportunity with... Read more
Practical Exploration Geology IV - Digitisation of Historic Data
The Balkans are a heavily mineralised region with a long history of mining stretching back to Roman mines of the second and third century. Industrial mining starting with the Austrians in the mid-nineteenth century and a number of British companies, including Selection Trust were present up until the outbreak of the Second World War. Prior to the break-up of Yugoslavia a lot of mines and... Read more
Practical Exploration Geology III - Adit Re-opening
In July Mineco’s PDT started the exploration programme on the newly acquired Rajkovici-Seliste-Celebici (“RSC”) exploration concession located in South East Bosnia adjacent to the operating Supla Stijena mine across the border in Montenegro. Whilst the area had been subject to relatively extensive exploration, both during Yugolsav times and much earlier, there is very limited historical reference... Read more
Practical Exploration Geology II - Drill Core Orientation
Drill Core Orientation in Rudnik The Mineco PDT team have been conducting a drilling campaign at our Rudnik mine in Serbia throughout the summer. As well as using the extracted core to identify mineralisation we can obtain very important structual data (measuring the directional properties of the rock) that is critical in developing our understanding of the wider geological setting. However to do... Read more
Practical Exploration Geology I - Underground Channel Sampling
Underground Channel Sampling in Goražde Mineco’s Goražde Project focuses on an abandoned antimony mine located in the Novi Goražde municipality of Bosnia Herzegovina. The antimony mineralisation is present as vein type or lenticular ore bodies located a) along the tectonic structures/faults and fractures and in b) the contact zone between altered limestone and hanging wall hosted schists/... Read more
