Ore Systems Consulting has worked extensively on numerous important Cu-Zn-Pb-Au-Ag VMS massive sulfide deposits:
1) The Noranda and Matagami mining camps of the Archean Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Quebec;
2) Phanerozoic circum-Pacific deposits of the British Columbia Cordillera, Alaska, and the Philippines;
3) Paleozoic deposits in Portugal (Neves Corvo and Aljsutrel) and Wales (Parys Mountain).
4) Paleoproterozoic deposits in Sweden (Skellefte greenstone belt).
5) The Kidd Creek deposit of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Ontario.

We have also completed reports on the stratigraphic setting and alteration of gold deposits, e.g. the Dome mine “superpit” in Timmins, and the large Hope Bay deposit in Nunavut

T.J. Barrett and W.H. MacLean have published 45 papers on volcanic-hosted base metal deposits, host stratigraphy, lithogeochemistry, and hydrothermal alteration, as well as completing 30 detailed consulting reports for the exploration industry over the last 15 years. We have developed an extensive stratigraphic and lithogeochemical database which we use to assess results from exploration programs in a variety of volcanic terrains. Our approach is to work closely with company geologists to assure optimal use of property and drilling information.

Areas of Specialization

• Definition of the chemostratigraphic framework of VMS mineralization, based on mapping and immobile-element lithogeochemical methods

• Tracing of key volcanic horizons in altered and deformed sequences

• Quantification of hydrothermal alteration using mass-change methods

• Reconstruction of the volcanic setting of mineralization & geological synthesis

• Recommendation of drilling targets based on stratigraphic and alteration trends

• Evaluation of properties for potential VMS mineralization

Ore Systems Consulting can provide important services in the search for ore deposits. We employ an advanced and rigorous approach to defining host volcanic units and alteration vectors based on immobile element methods and mass changes. This approach is also effective in complex or deformed volcanic terrains. We specialize in the treatment and interpretation of lithogeochemical data at all levels of field and drilling exploration. The results are then used together with detailed core logging and volcanic facies analysis to reconstruct the stratigraphic and hydrothermal history of a particulare terrane, and to target favorable drilling zones. This approach can also significantly reduce exploration costs. If you are interested in our expertise as applied to exploration problems, target identification and property evaluations, we would be pleased to provide further details.

The various Abstracts and illustrations that appear in the Global Portfolio sections of this site provide examples of how Ore Systems Consulting tackles and solves stratigraphic and alteration problems for various types of VMS host sequences, and in a variety of volcanic and tectonic settings.

Part of our strength lies in our combined wide range of experience in volcanic systems, stratigraphy and sedimentology, magmatic systems, hydrothermal chemistry, metamorphic terrains, seafloor geology, and seafloor mineralizing systems. Our experience in these areas is often influential in our overall assessment of the geology and mineralization of a particular terrane. In all of our projects, the application of lithogeochemical methods in combination with field work and core logging forms the basis of our geological syntheses and evaluations. These areas of research are listed thematically in the section on General Research Publications, under the headings: Ophiolites, Ocean Floor Research, Metal Transport, Magmatic Studies, Iron Formations and Sedimentary Rocks.