Gold deposits of Suriname

Geological context, production and economic significance

Journal article (2016)

Authors

N.M.E. Kioe-A-Sen Universiteit Utrecht, Anton de Kom University
M.J. van Bergen Universiteit Utrecht
TE Wong Anton de Kom University
S.B. Kroonenberg Applied Geology - CEG
Research Group
Applied Geology (CEG) (TU Delft)
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Published Date

2016

Language

English

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Faculty

Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Department

Geoscience and Engineering

Research Group

Applied Geology

Abstract

Gold has been a major economic asset for Suriname for more than a century. The long history of gold mining, concentrated in large parts of a greenstone belt in the northeast of the country, began with small-scale artisanal extraction activities and has recently seen the development of major open-pit operations. Despite the range of mining activities, Suriname’s gold deposits and occurrences are under-explored from a scientific point of view. Primary gold mineralisations in the greenstone belt occur in multiple forms, and although their origin is commonly related to the Palaeoproterozoic Trans-Amazonian orogeny, the controls of ore formation in specific cases often remain obscure. This contribution presents an abridged overview of currently available information on the geological setting and characteristics for some of the main deposits where gold is extracted. In view of the consistent link between gold metallogeny and granitoid–greenstone belts in the northern Guiana Shield, the mineralised settings in Suriname are discussed in a regional context.