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Chapter 12
Metallic mineral deposits
M. J. CROW & T. M. VAN LEEUWEN
This account concentrates on the the primary metallic mineral
deposits and occurrences in Sumatra, in particular the recent dis-
coveries of gold, tin and base metals. The residual and placer
deposits are given less emphasis, as no significant discoveries
have been made in recent years.
The history of mineral exploration and discovery in Indonesia
has been reviewed recently by van Leeuwen (1993, 1994), docu-
menting the change in emphasis of mineral-based activities from
western to eastern Indonesia since the World War II. These
studies bring up-to-date the classic account by van Bemmelen
(1949), written when the mineral deposits in western Indonesia,
particularly those in Sumatra, were among the better known and
prior to 1942, important contributors to the Indonesian economy.
The larger mineral deposits in southern Sumatra have been
described briefly by Gafoer & Purbo-Hadiwidjoyo (1986), and
are referred to in the regional descriptions of the mineral deposits
of SE Asia by Hutchison & Taylor (1978) and Hutchison (1996).
In wider-ranging reviews the geological setting of gold and base
metal deposits in indonesia have been discussed by Carlile &
Mitchell (1994), while those of tin deposits in SE Asia are catalo-
gued by Schwartz et al. (1995).
Sumatra has long been known as a source of gold, the name of
the island being derived from the Sanscrit word S v a r n a d v i p a ,
meaning 'Golden Island', dating from the importance of gold
deposits to the rulers of the Hindu kingdoms that flourished in
Sumatra from the seventh until the eleventh century. The esti-
mated total production of precious metals from Sumatra to 1994
was 91 t gold and 937 t of silver (van Leeuwen 1994).
Tin deposits in the Riau Archipelago, Bangka and Billiton
islands ('Tin Islands') are positioned at the convergence of
ancient maritime trade routes between the Middle East and India
and China, and Bernal (1991) has suggested that they have been
known and exploited from the earliest times, but there is no
archaeological evidence for this; current exploitation of tin dates
from the early eighteenth century. Between 1710 and 1942 a
total of 1.5 Mt of tin was produced (van Leeuwen 1994), but cur-
rently the demand for tin is limited and the bulk of tin production
in Indonesia comes from alluvial and off-shore placer deposits.
Sources of data
For the purposes of this review mineral localities in Sumatra and
the Tin Islands are catalogued in Tables 12.1-12.6 in terms of
'mineral clusters', the locations of which are shown in Figures
12.1 and 12.6-12.10. Mineral clusters represent concentrations
of mineral occurrences, or a group of deposits formed at similar
times, although a few include mineral deposits which were
formed in the same area but at different times. Summaries are
given of the geological setting and the history of exploitation of
these deposits. Original sources should be consulted for further
details. Recently discovered/investigated deposits that have not
(yet) been described in the published literature are discussed in
some detail in the text.
Van Bemmelen (1949), Young & Johari (1980), Djaswadi
(1993), Indonesian Mining Association (1995) and Crow (1995)
have compiled lists and details of mineral localities in Sumatra.
Summaries of this data are given in the Explanatory Notes
which accompany the 1:250 000 Geological Maps of Sumatra
published by the Geological Research and Development Centre,
Bandung. Additional data for southern Sumatra can be found in
the Quadrangle Regional Geochemistry Atlas Series published
by the Directorate of Mineral Resources and for Sumatra as a
whole in the geochemical atlases of Northern Sumatra (Stephen-
son et al. 1982) and Southern Sumatra (Machali Muchsin et al.
1995, 1997). Historic (pre-1941) data on several precious metal
deposits in North Sumatra appear in Bowles et al. (1985).
Details of other mineral occurrences are given in reports of the
North Sumatra Mineral Exploration Project (Directorate of
Mineral Resources/British Geological Survey) and in reports
and published accounts of the mineralogical and analytical
studies which followed this project (e.g. Bowles et al. 1984).
The Regional Physical Planning Programme for Transmigration
(RePPProT Land Resources Department/Bina Programme)
include a review of the mineral resources of Sumatra by Clarke
(1990) in a summary of the land and natural resources of Indonesia
to assist the planning of the Transmigration Programme.
Government-sponsored mineral exploration activities concen-
trated on geological mapping and long-term regional geochemical
surveys, with an emphasis on documentation but with limited
follow-up. The objective of these surveys was to encourage
exploration activity by the private sector. Private sector interest
in investment in mineral exploration in Sumatra was stimulated
by these programmes and peaked between 1985 and 1992
(Fig. 12.2). The latest cycle in exploration activity started
between 1995-1997 (Fig. 12.3).
Much data concerning mineralization in Sumatra has been accu-
mulated by mineral exploration companies in their Contracts of
Work (COW) areas. Relinquishment reports of COW companies
are not easily found on open file, and often important information,
for example on analyses and drill cores, was never reported, or was
misplaced when the COW ended (van Leeuwen 1994).
The most significant prospect located by the government-
sponsored regional geochemical surveys of Sumatra was the
porphyry deposit at Tangse where C u - M o mineralization was out-
lined by preliminary geochemical surveys (Page et al. 1978)
during the North Sumatra Project. This prospect was investigated
by Rio Tinto Indonesia (van Leeuwen et al. 1987). Recently pub-
lished descriptions of mined Sumatran mineral deposits include
Lebong Tandai (Jobson et al. 1994), Mangani (Kavalieris et al.
1987) and Muara Sipongi (Beddoe-Stephens et al. 1987), and
the recent discoveries include: Nam Salu (Schwartz & Surjono
1990b), Sungei Isahan in the Tigapuluh Mountains (Schwartz &
Surjono 1990a), Hatapang (Clarke & Beddoe-Stephens 1987),
Way Linggo (Andrews et al. 1991) and Miwah (Williamson &
Fleming 1995). Descriptions of Dairi (Middleton 2003) and
Martabe (Levet et al. 2003; Sutopo et al. 2003), both new discov-
eries, have been presented at recent conferences.
Timing of metallic mineralization events in Sumatra
No comprehensive dating of mineralization events in Sumatra has
been carried out. The available data are summarized in
Figure 12.4, with mini-maps illustrating the trends of zones of
mineralization.
147
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148 CHAPTER 12

,
BREUEH 960 , , 101 i ,
,06Oo E 980 100~
04o , ANGs
IGEUNT~T~ ~ M , ~ ~ X X
I %4~A ANU RENGUET \
SIKULEH/~ DUSUN ~ \
- MEULABOH-'~" O Q LOKOP ~ MALAY } 4~-
~x.4,~KA~I~ M E L u A K ~ B E R H A L A ~ PENINSULA /
BABHAROT~ .A --- ~ k ,
BEUKAH~I~ ~ ] SIGALGALA ~
TAPAKTUAN]~I~ v l ~ l BEUDE M)~RIA ~
DIARI [ ~ " ~---"~Lake " ~ /.~

_ 2ON ~ J PINAPAN~ AHATAP'AN jG~ ~ \ 2~-

SIBOLGA~ xJ ~k.(
~ ~
~l~l MARTABE ~ ~ ~ ~

"~ / SIHAu ~-k.._~,t~KuK-~-'6'Rj

~J NATAL~I~,V ~ROKAN j~/--~
PASAMAN~I~ r ~ l ~ BALUNG ~ X~
- 0~ LU~BUKSIKAPIN.G. v . ^IJIF~.v.,, / /_~ 0~
SINGK~AR~V~~' O SINGING' ~ <~S.-~ G K E P
BUKIT BULAT/VDANA-LI DIATASA \ ~ .
.-, m" ,'~ A TIGAPULUH ~CEBIA
(" \ ~x~'l'~ "- LUBUKGADANG
\ \ ~ ~L~ [ IDRKELAYANG k ~-.c-~
LOLO~ V " " \ ~ { L~A\D=,n^~', I
__ SIULUKr 1 ~ BANGKO . . . . . . . . c., A ~ . . . . . . . . 2~
- 2~ % DERAS__V q~IILRAWAS /r_lVlrlL/~l~l
~ L~l~j~ k~ KELAPA BATU[
r~. ~ A ~ S.TUBOH ~ "~-'~..~..-~A7KAMPIL-~BESII
D.DIPATIAMPAT[ J_ I ~ B U K I T T E M B A N G . . . . . ~ . . _ m V ~ j k T I K U S ~ I
MINERAL CLUSTERS v ~ \
LEBON k G O q~IITIRIS . .I. . ~
. . . .
L
~ILIBATU) SENYUBU . U M A R ~
B U K I T

\ { TEBRONG
O GOLD } -~
- 4~ TANJUNGSAKTI I~ ) 4~
O BASE METALS ~ ,~GARBA
MUARADUA I ~ /
TIN ~ ~ ~1~SEPUTI
WAY LINGGO
~ l ~ C ~~ ~TANJUNGKARANG
/
KOTAAGUNG~\ ~ /
0 500km ~ LAMPUNG

96~ 98~ 100~ 102~ 104~ _ /" 106~

I I I I I
Fig. 12.1. Metallic mineral clusters in Sumatra and the Tin islands.

Palaeozoic sedimentary basins (Pb-Zn Table 12.1)
Lead-zinc mineralization in metasediments and metavolcanics of
the Bentong-Billiton Accretion Complex (Barber & Crow 2003)
was found in Billiton in the 1980s in the Nam Salu open pit at the
Kelapa Kampit mine, during the exploration for tin, and this
deposit has been investigated by several companies during the
past 30 years. It occurs as sub-parallel veins and lenses within
and adjacent to the Nam Salu horizon over a strike of more than
5 km. The Nam Salu horizon consists of interbedded, iron-rich,
chemically precipitated sediments and basaltic tuff, altered by
metasomatic processes (Schwartz & Surjono 1990b). The total
resource outlined to date is of the order of 25 Mt @ 6.5% Zn,
4.0% Pb and 60 g t -~ Ag. The style, thickness and grades of
mineralization intersected in drillholes vary considerable along
the strike of the mineralized zones. Three styles of mineralization
have been recognized: (1) massive, fine-grained sphalerite,
galena and pyrite, in places showing streaky lamination and
commonly containing fragments of quartz and mudstone;
(2) brecciated quartz veins and mudstones with selvages of sul-
phides; (3) disseminated sphalerite and galena in sandstone
(Large 1991).
Several origins have been proposed for the lead-zinc mineral-
ization: (1) sediment-hosted exhalative (first proposed in 1977
by BHP geologists); (2) possibly syngenetic/diagenetic related
to volcanic exhalations with later faulting, folding and granite
intrusions having variably remobilized the mineralization (van
Leeuwen & Poole 1978); (3) syntectonic (?Triassic) formed
from hydrothermal solutions derived from tectonically induced
dewatering of the host sediments, with mineral deposition taking
place in structurally dilated zones (Large 1991); and (4) vein-
type related to hydrothermal fluids exsolved from a crystallizing
acid magma (Schwartz & Surjono 1990b).
Important zinc-lead deposits, the Dairi cluster, were recently
identified in northern Sumatra, in the Kluet Formation to the
NW of Lake Toba by Herald Resources. The deposits include
massive Pb-Zn veins that were mined on a limited scale in
the early 1900s (van Bemmelen 1949). In addition to the veins,
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
i 9~ ~ I I
96~
1~176176 CONTRACTS
OF WORK SIGNINGS
MIWAH
1969-]972 ~
-4 ~
-2ON
NIAS %
-0 o
% ~!~:i~!~?~!~84184
- 2os % BESI -
DRILL-TESTEDDEPOSITS
LEBON(.31~I[~EEBONG DONOK
/~ TIN TANDAI
-4 ~
O BASEMETALS
~t GOLD(primary)
O GOLD(alluvial)
0 500km
96OE
I
98 ~
I
100 ~
I
102 ~
I
several other styles of mineralization have been identified: sedi-
mentary-exhalative (sedex) deposits of Mississippi Valley Type
(MVT), believed to be formed by the reaction of volcanic fluids
with sediments; and supergene mineralization, the latter presum-
ably deposited recently from descending metal-rich solutions
derived from the weathering of the sedex mineralisation (Middle-
ton 2003). The sedex mineralization occurs in a dome-like struc-
ture and is traceable over a strike distance of about 5 km along
the NE flank of the dome. It is hosted by carbonaceous shales
and dolosiltstones and forms a single thick horizon in the SE
and multiple, mostly thinner horizons in the NE. The MVT and
vein -type mineralization are confined to a sequence of shelf car-
bonates which are in sharp contact with overlying sedex-bearing
argillites (Middleton 2003). The project has reached the bankable
feasibility stage. Measured and indicated resources amount to
7.1 Mt @ 16.6% Zn, 10.2% Pb and 13 g t -~ Ag. An additional
10 Mt of c. 8% Zn, 4.2% Pb and 6 g t -~ Ag has been inferred.
Two extensive skarn zones at the Sarkea prospect (Hendrawan
et al. 2001) located to the south of the Dairi prospect were drill-
tested by Rio Tinto in 2001. The skarns are related to the intrusion
of a granite of the Sibolga Complex into (?calcareous) beds of the
Kluet Formation. Magnetite is the dominant mineral, followed by
pyrrhotite and minor sphalerite-molybdenite in a magnetite-
silica-chlorite-garnet + actinolite-epidote assemblage. The
skarn is locally cut by late quartz veins containing significant
amounts of Ag, Cu, Pb and Zn.
During a regional stream sediment sampling programme carried
out in South Aceh by Rio Tinto, Zn dominant banded and
laminated pyrite-pyrrhotite-sphalerite-galena mineralization,
and Pb-dominant galena-sphalerite mineralization, both of
apparent limited extent, were found near Beukah in an area of
METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 149
I I
1967-1971 TIN
COPPER
GOLD
0 o-
!~?::~i i:i]
CEBIA
........
BUKIT TIK
EMBANG
LKELAPA
LEBONGSIMPANG KAMPIT
4 ~-
LIN(
PAL Fig. 12.2. Contract of Work (COW) licence
6o '
areas signed in Sumatra and the Tin islands
between 1967 and 1992 showing deposits that
104 ~
I
~__~ 6~ 108 ~
I have been drill-tested.
meta-argillites and subordinate meta-psammites and marbles.
These are interpreted as sedex and remobilised cavity-fill deposits,
respectively (Dalimunthe et al. 1996).
Late Triassic-Early Jurassic magmatic arc and the Tin
Granites (Sn, Wo; Tables 12.2 and 12.3, Figs 12.5 and
12.6a, b)
Mineral deposits and mineral occurrences, predominantly of tin,
are associated with granitoids emplaced in the period between
220 and 195 Ma, and associated hydrothermal activity. In this
period Sumatra was a part of the western margin of the SE Asia
Tin Belt which extends from Myamar to Billiton Island. The
majority of significant tin deposits are associated with peralumi-
nous granites of collision origin (Mitchell 1977, 1979, 1986)
that were emplaced during the Indosinian Orogeny (Hutchison
1989) (Fig. 12.5). These peraluminous granites are classified as
being within the Main Range Granite Province by Cobbing
et al. (1986, 1992), Cobbing (2000; see also Chapter 5) and
Schwartz et al. (1995), the type area being the western part of
the Malay Peninsula. Granitoids in the Eastern Granite Province
in the eastern part of the Malay Peninsula are predominantly
metaluminous, but some of these granitoids are also associated
with tin mineralization (Fig. 12.5). Cobbing (et al. 1992 and
Chapter 5) describes the occurrence of granitoids of both I- and
S-types with similar age ranges, representing the two separate
provinces in the north of the Riau Archipelago, overlapping
south of Singkep Island and on Bangka and Billiton Islands to
form a single belt. The textures, chemistry and geochronology
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150 CHAPTER 12

I I i\ L_., I I
96OE 98 ~ 100o / \ 104o 106o
",...CONTRACTS OF WORK
SIGNI~ 995-1997

,DUSUN

Lake
DAIRI
Toba

%
_0 o 0 ~ __

%
(3
%
DRILL-TESTED DEPOSITS

C~ BASE METAL
9 GOLD
%
~,1~ NAPAL
0 500km
Fig. 12.3. Contract of Work (COW) licence
areas signed in Sumatra and the Tin Islands
104 ~
between 1995 and 1997 showing deposits
96OE 98 ~ 100 ~ 102 ~
I I I I I I%, that have been drill-tested.

of these granitoids has been described by Cobbing et al. (1992 and
Chapter 5), and Schwartz et al. (1995).
The foreland of the Indosinian Orogenic Belt extended from the
central Malay Peninsula deep into eastern Sumatra (Sibumasu).
The West Sumatra Block, when sited approximately between
present day Borneo (Cathaysia) and New Guinea (Gondwana)
(see also Fig. 14.11) also appears to have participated distally in
this collision. In Chapter 5 Cobbing refers to the presence of S-
type granites in northern Sumatra, dating from 200Ma
(McCourt et al. 1996), including a suite of tin-bearing granites
associated with the Medial Sumatra Tectonic Zone, and also the
West Sumatra magmatic arc which is composed mainly of Volca-
nic Arc-type granites (as classified by Pearce et al. 1984).
West S u m a t r a
McCourt et al. (1996) identified a magmatic arc in western
Sumatra (219 _ 4 to 183 • 13 Ma) that overlaps the post-collision
phase of the Indosinian Orogeny. Alluvial cassiterite is associated
with the locally porphyritic Tantan Biotite Granite (210 + 10 Ma
K - A r age, Suwarna et al. 1994). In Chapter 5 Cobbing has noted
the similarity of the Sijunjung biotite granite (247 • 12 Ma K - A r
age, quoted by Sato (1991) and 206 + 3 Ma by Silitonga &
Kastowo 1975), with the granites of the Main Range Province,
but tin is not recorded. Cobbing & Mallick (1984) include the
unmineralized Payumbah Granite near Muarasipongi in the
Main Range Province, but found parts of the Sibolga Complex
reminiscent of Eastern Province granites of Peninsular Malaysia.
Minor alluvial tin is associated with the Sibolga Complex but
the age and source of this tin mineralisation is uncertain
(Aspden et al. 1982b).
Westerveld (1937) mentions clasts of vein quartz with cassiter-
ite in a Tertiary conglomerate 18 km to the west of Palembang in
SE Sumatra. This tin appears to have been derived from the con-
cealed Palembang Batholith, known from oil exploration (De
Coster 1974). The only surface exposure of the batholith is the
Bukit Batu quartz syenite pluton southeast of Palembang (van
Tongeren 1936; Gasparon & Varne 1995), which is associated
with quartz-cassiterite veins (Katili 1974a). The Bukit Batu
syenite has geographic and chemical affinity with, and a similar
SVSr/S6Sr ratio to the Main Range Province (see Chapter 5),
though the end value of +5.3 (Gasparon & Varne 1995) is very
different from Main Range Province ~Nd values of --8 to --10
(Cobbing et al. 1992).
M e d i a l S u m a t r a Tectonic Z o n e ( M S T Z )
The Medial Sumatra Tectonic Zone (MSTZ) (Hutchison 1994;
Barber & Crow 2003) is associated with granitic plutons carrying
strongly to intensely pleochroic cassiterite, similar to cassiterite
associated with the Main Range Granite Province in Malaysia
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M E T A L L I C M I N E R A L DEPOSITS 151

THE AGES OF MINERALISATION , MIWAH

EVENTS NEOGENE
GOLD
Ma ~ ~
01 1" o~.~ 9 LEBONGDONOK "~MARTABE
a) ~ ~ "~,~.
10t 1" ~ "~ ~ O T TANGSECo-Mo . "~.-.TANGSE ~- "~
/ ,l, ~
o 2 _c * "...r ~.,SALIDA " ~
20 ~ ~ E i~tX-- L x
30|
t o
B E U E H VEINS

~,~ ~ LEBON~ EMPAH )

~~ ,,h PORPHYRY-TYPE"-~\ "~) ~ ~. #4,~

601r "" MINERALISATION \~, ~ ~>..x~
- 13-9Ma ~ ~. ~, %~j.~'+"~

ZX HATAPANTIN
G
. "M~SIKULEH
ulr ~ ~
GARBATIN ~ k , , ~
90 ~ <~,~_,, MANUNGGALSKARNS~ (~_'~x
~ O s,~u,~. S~A~NS " ,
00 ~ E
'%
HATAPANG/~/-e,,'~x
NN
10 .~ \ ~'
9 MUAR"A~Ook-er
1 ~ ' ~ SIPONGI~c MESOZOIC
2o TcoHisionof Bentaro-Saling ~""- DAN~,URANTAU MAGMATIC ARCS
30 ~ O. . . . ic IslandArcs "~ " ,,O KI~LAYANG __
~x X " "".
|~ " "- "'" Mid-Jurassic
40 ' ~ o ~ "~ ( " EarlyCretaceous
.o o~ ' ~ "A n~,Rn~ UagmaticArc
50 ~ {~ ~ DANAU RANAU ~ Z"4~k"g~'P ''Zl
60 ~ [ ~ E~ ~Z~ MKjLAIAINpGO
NGI ~ie/e
',,.:.%
70 o,,g.oor

GREISEN Deformationof
, ~ BELITUNG
A~/ A"vv GREISENSTin
R~ Granite Mineralisation
Main Peri~ ~ ~ ~ ~ s ~ C I , ~o~
I } A TANTANGRANITE ~
~ (MAGMATICARC)

O
.~ /~ BINTANGRANITE

5~ TIGAPULL
~
?SIBOLGATIN TRIASSIC-JURASSIC
O ? SULPHIDESIN
TIN MINERALISATION
BENTONG-BELITUNG
ACCRETIONARYCOMPLEX
O ? DIARIBASEMETALS
Fig. 12.4. The timing of the main
mineralization events and their distribution
in Sumatra and the Tin Islands.

(Hosking 1977). Van Bemmelen (1949) suggested that the Medial the tin has been weathered out, eroded and redistributed in Tertiary
Sumatra tin granite suite occurred within an allochthonous thrust and Quaternary sediments. Alluvial tin has been won for over 50
slice sourced in the Tin Islands Archipelago. The Medial years from the Siabu-Sungai Lipai mining area in the Rokan
Sumatra tin zone is now considered to be related to a suite of cluster, from which about 100 t of tin concentrate was produced
peraluminous granitoids belonging to the Main Range Granite up to 1982. Occasionally diamonds are found in the concentrates,
Province of Peninsular Malaysia (see Chapter 5). which are believed to be of multi-cycle alluvial origin, originally
Primary and alluvial tin in the Tigahpuluh tin cluster (Table 12.2) sourced in the Tapanuli Group (Clarke et al. 1982b). The source
is derived from granites emplaced in Tapanuli Group metasedi- of the tin is the Rokan-Siabu granitoid suite intruded into the
ments to the east of the MSTZ. Schwartz & Surjono (1990a) Tapanuli Group on the margin of the MSTZ. Fifteen greisen,
report K - A r ages of 197 __ 2 and 193 4- 2 Ma from muscovite in quartz vein and alluvial tin occurrences are associated with these
a cassiterite-bearing greisen in the cupola of the Sungei Isahan granitoids (Clarke et al. 1982b; Rock et al. 1983). The Rokan
muscovite granite. The granitoids from the Tigapuluh Mountains Granite is variably cataclastically deformed and cooled to
analysed by Schwartz & Surjono (1990a) and Suwarna et al. c. 400 ~ between 186 4- 2 and 189 4- 2 Ma (determinations on
(1991) have 'high' and 'moderate' peraluminous compositions in biotites using the K - A r method quoted by Rock et al. 1983). The
the scheme of Villaseca et al. (1998), suggesting reactions with roof zones of the mineralized granites were exposed to erosion by
peraluminous pelitic and greywacke lithologies. Upright folds block faulting during the Neogene.
with sub-horizontal plunges indicate deformational thickening of The Penno-Triassic granite plutons in the Alas Valley section of
the sediment pile, facilitating hydrous fluxing and anatexis. the MSTZ, west of the Sumatran Fault Zone have metasomatic
Crustal melts were emplaced in shears within the MSTZ. The Tiga- cupolas and, according to Cameron et al. (1982a), were emplaced
puluh Mountains have the potential for the exploitation of small during a transcurrent fault episode. The foliated muscovite-biotite
deposits of alluvial cassiterite, which may be accompanied by granitoid plutons (Ketambe and Upper Sempali) and the Kais Intru-
small amounts of gold. sive Complex, which is believed to be the source of the alluvial tin in
To the NW of the Tigahpuluh cluster, sporadic elevated geo- the Kais cluster (Johari 1988), from their field descriptions are similar
chemical tin values in stream sediments (Machali et al. 1997) to the anatectic granitoids which occur elsewhere in the MSTZ, but
were probably derived from the cupolas of granites from which there are no chemical or isotopic data to confirm this affinity.
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152 C H A P T E R 12

o 0

,._.,

-4 -
~ .~

<

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~.-
r
~-
o ~_~ ~ s ~~ ,
~ ~.~

~.- a ~---,-. ~ ~ ~ _ o~ s
<

"GI

9~ ~ ~ .~ .~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I I I I

-~ ~ ~.~ .~- ~ ~ ~ ~
-,-.~
9,- ._ _
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0
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z
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z
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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 153

c,o --~ 'e

0
o > <

,0
"~ -- "6

,~ -~
-~ ~ 0
9~ ~ ~ o ,~ = o+
9~ ,~ "~

= ~ .=

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r'~

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0

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
154
The I n d o s i n i a n f o r e l a n d
In Northern Sumatra, a belt of remote and poorly exposed grani-
toids (Fig. 12.5) north of the Medial Sumatra Tectonic Zone
(MSTZ), were dated as Permo-Triassic by Cameron et al.
(1980). In Chapter 5 Cobbing correlates these granitoids with
the Main Range Province of the Malay Peninsula, based on the
field descriptions of biotite and muscovite granites with tourma-
line, reported in the Keteren, Serbajadi and Biden intrusions.
The Dusun biotite granite is excluded here, as it has an early
dioritic phase (Cameron et al. 1983), Mo-Cu mineralisation and
is most likely associated with a Miocene intrusion (Dalimunthe
et al. 1997a, b). The Serbajadi Batholith is elongated N W - S E ,
has a massive marginal carapace of lineated schists and gneisses
(Cameron et al. 1983) and according to Bennett et al. (1981c),
was emplaced during the regional slate-grade metamorphism
and deformation of the Tapanuli Group. This granitoid belt
coincides with a 'mid level geochemical enrichment zone' of tin
identified during the North Sumatra Project stream-sediment
survey (Stephenson et al. 1982), but no in situ tin mineralization
has been reported.
There are several islands in the Malacca Straits to the east of
Sumatra composed of granite and/or greisen, with tin mineraliz-
ation. The Berhala cluster occurs in the three Berhala Islands off-
shore Tebingtinggi. Here tin and rare-earth minerals in beach
sands have been weathered from gneissic biotite granite, greisens
and cordierite-sillimanite aureole hornfels (van Tongeren 1935 in
Cameron et al. 1981). Van Bemmelen (1949) considered the
Berhala granites to be the same age as those in the Malaysian
Tin Belt. Katili (1973) reported a K - A r age of 167 Ma from an
altered basalt cored during oil exploration in the area of the
Berhala Islands. Pulau Perak north of the Berhala islands and
SW of Langkawi Island is composed of quartz-tourmaline horn-
fels (Jones 1981), which is related to a concealed pluton.
Several granite plutons buried beneath the Tertiary sediments of
the Central Sumatra Basin were cored in the Foreland Zone during
the exploration for oil. A hydrothermally altered muscovite granite
pluton at the bottom of the Idris No.1 well in the Coastal Plains
Block gave a K - A r muscovite age of 208 __ 7 Ma (Koning &
Darmono 1982). Nearby detrital tin in the Petani Formation
(Stephenson et al. 1982) appears to have been derived from
another (undated) buried pluton to the north of Rengat.
The main S E A s i a n Tin Belt
The bulk of the economic tin mineralisation in the Indonesian
section of the Southeast Asia Tin Belt occurs in the Riau Archipe-
lago, Bangka and Billiton, within the Indosinian Collision Zone
(Fig. 12.5 and Table 12.3). An irregular 'tin front' separates
the mineralized peraluminous tin-bearing granitoids from the
unmineralized metaluminous granitoids. On Bangka Island
(Fig. 12.6a), the granitoids were emplaced in foreland basin
sediments (Tempilang Sandstone), which unconformably overlie
an accretionary complex composed of imbricated sediments
and metavolcanics of the Carboniferous-Permian Pemali Group
(Ko 1986; Barber & Crow 2003). On Billiton Island,
(Fig. 12.6b) the accretionary complex is exposed beneath folded
Triassic sediments in (former) underground mines for primary
tin. Lower Palaeozoic stratigraphic units are not exposed in the
Indonesian islands, unless they occur on Singkep Island among
the unfossiliferous slates and graphitic schists of the Persing
Complex (Sutisna et al. 1995).
According to Cobbing et al. (1992 and in Chapter 5) Sn-bearing
granitoids were emplaced during a post-collision peak between
220 and 200 Ma. Tin (and wolfram) mineralization is associated
with late two-phase granitoid textural variants within the predomi-
nantly peraluminous megacrystic K-feldspar granitoids. The
process of textural evolution from megacrystic granitoid through
CHAPTER 12
heterogeneous granite porphyry to microgranite has been
described by Pitfield et al. (1990). The textural changes leading
to the heterogenous microgranites were attributed to sudden
losses in pressure, which resulted in the quenching, fluidization
and disruptive emplacement of residual melt into a partially or
wholly crystalline host granitoid. The emplacement of residual
melts was often accompanied by alkali metasomatism, volatile-
fluxing and hydrothermal alteration, culminating in replacement
greisen deposits, veins and stockwork systems containing tin,
wolfram and sulphides.
Tin and wolfram ores (Table 12.3) occur either as massive repla-
cement deposits with greisen, as non-massive replacements of
low-grade ore, as at the Pemali Mine on Bangka, or as stockworks
and simple veins. The cooling period for the granite in the Pemali
Mine was between 159 and 95 Ma (Schwartz et al. 1995) based on
the K - A r ages of biotites from this granite that was emplaced
around 211 __ 3 Ma ( R b - S r errorchron quoted by Schwartz &
Surjono 1991). The lengthy hydrothermal regime during the
cooling of intrusions generated by the collision orogeny provided
favourable conditions for tin mineralization on a regional scale
(Lehmann 1990).
Tin, and sometimes wolfram, are invariably accompanied by
later sulphides, and mineralization is accompanied by tourmaline,
fluorite and topaz. These replacement bodies, stockworks and vein
systems, which are characterized by the absence of magnetite and
paucity of basemetal and iron sulphides, formed in the cupolas of
the granitoids. For example the Tikus mine of NE Billiton
(Suryono & Clarke 1981" Schwartz & Surjono 1990c) was exca-
vated in a greisen topaz-quartz pipe within the Tanjung
Pandang batholith. In contrast to the other Main Range tin gran-
ites, tin was not identified in geochemical analyses of the
Tanjung Pandang batholith; Lehmann & Harmanto (1990)
suggested that the tin remained in solution until it was removed
during the hydrothermal stage. In the southern part of Billiton,
several tin deposits (e.g. Tebrong and the Senyubuk cluster)
occur as stockworks and sheeted veins in metasediments, but
erosion has not yet exposed the granite source.
A rather unusual style of mineralization is found at the disused
Kelapa Kampit mine, where complex tin-sulphide mineralization
is present in both stratabound 'bedding-parallel veins' and cross-
cutting veins: on a mine-scale the distribution of the mineraliz-
ation is stratabound. Bedding-parallel veins also are found in
several other localities, including Batu Besi and Selumar. The
veins are generally up to 2 km long and 3 m thick. They contain
varying amounts of magnetite, sulphides, amphibole, biotite/
chlorite aggregates and quartz. Some veins are magnetite-rich,
some are sulphide-rich, while others comprise both magnetite-
rich and sulphide-rich portions. The veins are hosted by metasedi-
ments, with the exception of the rich and thick (35 m) Nam Salu
Lode (now largely mined out), which occurs in the Nam Salu
horizon (mafic volcanics-ironstone). Certain characteristics of
the Nam Salu Lode and bedding-parallel veins (stratabound/strati-
form, sharp contacts, fine grain size and other textural features,
abundance of iron minerals, and the presence of bedded barite)
led several workers, including Hosking (1977), Hutchinson
(1986) and van Wees & de Vente (1989) to conclude that the
mineralization is of syngenetic origin. Other workers, e.g. Meyer
(1979) and Schwartz & Surjono (1990b), favour an epigenetic
(hydrothermal and/or pyrometasomatic) replacement origin
related to granitic intrusions based on replacement textures dis-
played by the mineralization, chemical characteristics (of the
Nam Salu horizon), and the presence of skarn-like assemblages
that include amphibole, pyroxene and garnet.
Recent work at Batu Besi has shown that the latter interpretation
is the most likely. In this area several 'iron formations' with strike
lengths of up to 6 km and up to 50 m thick, occur close to granitoids
that are extensively greisenized and veined by quartz along their
margins, together with felsic quartz porphyry and microgranite
dykes with associated tin mineralization (Middleton 2002). They
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METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 155

("4
..,--. O0
tc'b

8-~ ~ ~ -
v

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8
.,,_,

- i ~ 9~ , ~; ~ _~
m~- ~v
v v ~ m

+1 +1 +1 +1 J

-t-I~ o

+1+1~ >,+1 ~ ~ a +1 +~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~+1 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

r
9~ , . ~ .~ ~ ~ ~
~o ~~
,,-.! ~ ~ ~
~ ~

r.~ ~ r~ r~

r,!

;>.,
::u

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~ s a =
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2
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9

t",l ~[.-,
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

156 CHAPTER 12

,,.-,,

o"-,
o",,
,,....,,
~=~
o,I
o',,
0 r-~ a. ~ ,-. C, N

> ~ - ~ ..~ r.~

< 8
tt'3
O0
=3
4 =
-~ ~-, ~ . ~ "~=

~=~,
, _ . _= ~ ="F= ~ ~ ~ ~
.= ~#~
= ~'=- ~_~ ~ . ("4
~
~ =-~ r.~
[-

4-1
+1 >, +
"~ 4-1
~ r ~ o= .~-~ +s +~..- ~ +~-~ =.=~=
,-, r 4-1

G"
" "= '~ 5 ~ 5 '= ~ = +1 +1 - +l .-~

,_, =Eo=o.s
u
2

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 157

I 84 I 9 ~:
96~ 98 ~ ..
~D
Granite Provinces and Granite Types
SIBUMASU BLOCK Langkawi
9 (GONDWANA) eerake ,

\ ~
, MAIN RANGE

EASTERN
, (Peraluminous
S-Type) 't
B E L T (Metaluminousl_Type) I

;er
~,; O Berhala
EAST MALAYA BLOCK
--~ Keteren~

9 \
_2ON

~ " ~'~~' ......' Rokan-

Muarasipongi~Siabu
Idrisq

_o o

' Sungei~@~
x~lsahan : J
~:Tgapuluh

- 2os

--4 ~
F SUMATRA BLO(
'CATHAYSIA)

_6 ~
0 300km
I

96~ 98 ~ 100 ~ 102 ~ 104~ 106 ~ ~-108 c

I I I I I I I

Fig. 12.5. Distribution of Late Triassic and Early Jurassic granites in Sumatra, Malaysia and the Tin Islands in the Indosinian Orogen. Granite Provinces and typology
from Chapter 5.

are deeply weathered into a mixture of maghemite, goethite, hema-
tite plus remnant magnetite. Deep drilling has revealed the primary
mineralized rocks to comprise skarns of varied assemblages, which
show a complex paragenesis. Early phase 'proto-skarn' is a zebra-
patterned, contorted, banded lithology, with dark bands predomi-
nantly of magnetite and light bands of calcsilicate (probably
mainly versuvianite) and fluorite. It resembles the so-called
'wrigglite' skarn at Moina, Tasmania (Kwak & Askins 1981).
In places this early skarn phase is altered to a garnet-rich lithol-
ogy, which in turn is retrogressed to carbonate-silica and clay, but
the most important mineralization stage is a chlorite-biotite-
sulphide-fluorite assemblage, still with preserved magnetite
wrigglite banding. This style commonly has > 1 % Sn grade
while the 'proto-skarn' has Sn grades in the order of 0.2-0.1%.
The later stage retrograde mineralization is interpreted as associ-
ated with a late stage, volatile-rich hydrothermal fluid that also
caused the greisenization of the granitoids. It is likely that the
skarn was formed after a carbonate-rich protolith.
Bintan
Tin mineralization on Bintan Island is associated with metaluminous
to peraluminous Volcanic Arc Granites of the East Belt (Schwartz
et al. 1995) of the Eastern Province, intruded c. 230 Ma. Cobbing
et al. (1992) attributed these granitoids and their mineralization to
melting of the lithospheric mantle as a result of the subduction of
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158 CHAPTER 12

(a) : KLABAT BATHOLITH ~..& 106~

F-: GRANITE PROVINCES AND
O: GRANITE TYPE
I ~ MAIN RANGE 'S' or 'IS'Type
Fi iiiilili E A S T E R N
!...i.iljlii!i!J BELT 'r-Type
PENANGA,~
; Tin Mining
'. 9 Primary Soils and
-2os~ ; Deposits ":~:.:!:.Sediments 2~-
'. Tempilan name of mineral cluster
Old T.KK
~luk~ salinta
\

::Tr
Thrust /
PERMISA
PADING
Triassic ~ Tem~i~ L.
Sandstone
'TIN ZONE'
Early-Mid Permian t
and older Pemai GrOup / ~:: ::Tr

_
Carboniferous- ~
Early Permian
0
i iiii ' , i
'Pebbly

50km
Mudstone'
Tapanuli Group~--

106~
TOOX 107 ~
I,,, ,
3 ~_

(] 1, . 0 30kml
Sye n l t ~ ~'-'X"J -..~- L ._.a I
Gabbro~,Munti (, S-~"~ I
TANJU~:G~ TIkus . . . . I
PANDANG," ~ [l~,
L!!!!'! II Il I Ii ~II. .IRL
.. ~ i ~
i ". . . . . . giN~GUNON G
....... ]
:;I~,::: .'lanjau .....ExaEll2Jl . . . . . ~ M A N G I
tttt-t-t~,
....... ~-',-~ ~ , . , .... edan-I
!1111111 qEll. , ~".ll_L~Cl./Ulll ~ I
I ~ Z~.........~ 4 ~ Labu ,']l~VA-ntulDti;1Man g kuban g I
/ / ~ "~ GUNUNG G e" Batu n";-~Beb u ng I
I~/~ ..:.. ~ Badau L E G A U ..9 "~'~aunung I
] ~ J ~ . t Papan Zr Selumar.t..!." i~(... /
Seumar "..',.."i ~V]l~~r~n,-~ Man ar i
~
I J: ..L.: eaga larD:, eSi:~ns
tl~
I
-~sA~ Sambulae . ~n
.... ~ N a n g k a / ~ LILANG~hi :~, _) TIN FRONT

/
"'~.Bunta L . ~ . . . , , . ~ . - ~ l ~ l t l t ~ , ..-"~" .............. Fig. 12.6. (a) Bangka Island; (b) Billiton
Island. Compilation maps to show
distribution of granites and primary and
secondary tin deposits. The structure of
- ~ ,,' I II~KELUMPANG Bangka Island is after Ko (1986) and the
PARANG BULOH..-" ~I~_)~~ .~" . . . . granite typologyafter Cobbing et al. (1992).

(Palaeo-Tethys) oceanic crust, assimilation of continental crest erosion and sedimentation, characterized by distinctive climatic
lithologies and fractional crystallization processes. regimes, and accompanied by a progressive rise in sea level that
In Malaysia to the NE, metaluminous intrusions of the Central eventually submerged the present-day shelf platform area sur-
Belt (Schwartz et al. 1995) of the Eastern Granite Province are rounding the tin islands (Aleva 1973, 1985; Batchelor 1979).
associated with gold, stibnite and sulphide mineralization, as
exploited at Raub, but this style of mineralization is not seen in
the Indonesian sector of the Indosinian orogen.
Jurassic to Early Cretaceous magmatic arcs
(Cu, Au; Table 12.4 and Fig. 12.7)
P l a c e r tin
These magmatic arcs have been eroded, exposing batholiths and
Primary tin deposits have given rise to numerous onshore and off- plutons, so that the roof structure and mineralization are rarely pre-
shore placers (Fig. 12.6a, b), including Koba Tin and Cebia, from served. In Central Sumatra a few examples of intrusion-centered
which the bulk of Indonesia's tin production has come. Most are mineralization are known from the Mid-Jurassic-Early Cretac-
palaeoplacers which were deposited and partly reworked from eous Arc. Skarn and disseminated mineralization at Muarasipongi
the Late Miocene to Recent times, during three major phases of have been described in detail by Beddoe-Stephens et al. (1987). At
!
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS
the time of the emplacement of the batholith at 158 -+- 23 Ma
precious metal and copper deposits were formed.
In the Singkarak cluster copper and precious metals in the
disused Timbulan quarry are associated with an altered granitoid.
This intrusion is probably related to the Sulit Air suite of plutons,
from which Imtihanah (2000) obtained 4~ ages of
192 + 0.4 and 193 ___4 M a for emplacement, which is the
suggested time of porphyry-type mineralization.
The Danau (Lake) Ranau Kelayang low-grade C u - M o mineral-
ization in the north of the Bangko cluster occurs in altered roof
rocks of the Bungo Batholith. Components of the batholith have
K - A r mineral ages ranging between 169 and 129 Ma (McCourt
et al. 1996).
Woyla Group and Accretion Complex
(Au-Ag, Pb-Zn; Table 12.4 and Fig. 12.7)
A possible example of exhalative sulphide mineralization is present
within mafic lavas of the Bentaro Volcanic Formation in the Geun-
teut cluster. Bedded hematite-magnetite rock in the Tapaktuan
Volcanic Formation is a potential, although limited, source of
massive volcanic exhalative auriferous magnetite and sulphides
forming the Tapaktuan and Babahrot clusters from which alluvial
gold is derived (Cameron et al. 1982b). The alluvial gold in the
Natal river is derived from skarn-type deposits at the contacts of
Late Cretaceous intrusions and Woyla metasediments (see
below). Alluvial chromite and perhaps some gold in the Pasaman
cluster are derived from the Pasaman ophiolite body, which was
possibly a seamount accreted within the Woyla succession.
The Sungei Pagu former P b - Z n mine near Lubukgadang north
of Kerinci Volcano occurs within limestones in a megabreccia,
composed mostly of serpentinite boulders derived from an adja-
cent massive serpentinised harzburgite (Hariwidjaja & Suharsono
1990). Small diatremes and andesite and dacite dykes occur in the
area. The megabreccia and ophiolite body are similar to lithologies
described within the Woyla Group at Natal (Wajzer et al. 1991).
The megabreccia is probably an olistostrome or a mud diapir in
an accretion complex of which the massive serpentinite forms a
component. Van Bemmelen (1949) suggested that the P b - Z n -
Mn mineralisation was of metasomatic origin, but here it is
suggested to be a manganese-rich metalliferous deposit of hydro-
thermal type (Mitchell & Garson 1981) formed in an oceanic
environment with the harzburgite representing part of a seamount,
capped by limestone.
Late Cretaceous magmatic arc (Sn, Au-Ag;
Table 12.4 and Fig. 12.7)
Subduction beneath Sumatra was re-established in the Late Cre-
taceous, following the collision of the Bentaro-Saling Oceanic
island Arc Complex in the Mid Cretaceous (Barber 2000). The
reversal of subduction direction resulting from the collision of
oceanic volcanic arcs with Sundaland in the Cretaceous was
identified as potentially important for mineralization by Carlile
& Mitchell (1994). In Northern Sumatra, small amounts of gold
in the Sikuleh area are derived from skarns in reef limestones of
the Bentaro Arc formed when the Younger Complex of the
Sikuleh Batholith was emplaced at c. 98 Ma. Detrital tin, identified
by stream sediment sampling during the North Sumatra Project
(Stephenson et al. 1982), is probably of Tertiary age, as no tin min-
eralization was seen in greisens and veins at the contact of the
Sikuleh Batholith with the Woyla Group, well exposed in stream
sections along the northern margin of the intrusion (M.C.G.
Clarke, unpublished map, pers. comm.).
Precious metals and sulphides in the Natal cluster, formerly
mined from magnetite bodies at the contact of the Manunggal
159
Batholith with the Woyla Group, were formed around the time
of its intrusion (c. 87 Ma, Rock et al. 1983).
Cassiterite and cerium-bearing monazite placers of the Garba
cluster were eroded from greisens and pegmatites which formed
in the cupola in a late phase of the Garba Batholith. This composite
batholith was constructed during the Cretaceous, with a Mid-
Cretaceous dioritic phase (117-115 Ma, Aptian) followed by a
Late Cretaceous ( 8 6 - 8 2 M a , Santonian) granitic phase with
quartz-feldspar two-phase variants (McCourt & Cobbing 1993).
Tin and rare earth mineralization was formed as a result of the suc-
cessive fractionation of melts emplaced in a long-lived conduit and
hydrothermal system developed in a favourable carapace. Alluvial
tin in the Seputi cluster to the SE of the Garba Mountains is
thought to be associated with a younger muscovite granite, which
is a fractionated phase of the Padean Pluton (McCourt & Cobbing
1993), dated at c. 85 Ma and having low values of tin. The source
of the alluvial tin was most likely the highly fractionated granite
phases and greisens that have since been eroded away.
The second category of Late Cretaceous tin deposits in Sumatra
is associated with the Hatapang Granite, studied in detail by
Clarke & Beddoe-Stephens (1987). The cassiterite and wolframite
in this untested resource are derived from pegmatites and greisens
developed in the carapace of the granite, emplaced at 80 i 1 Ma
( R b - S r isochron age) to the rear of the magmatic arc. The
Hatapang Granite margin has a peraluminous chemistry and has
chemical characters of both a within-plate A-type granite (see
Chapter 5) and an S-type anatectic granite of collision origin
(Clarke & Beddoe-Stephens 1987). Detrital tin weathered out of
Tertiary sediments 7 0 - 8 0 km to the SE of Hatapang is possibly
derived from hidden Late Cretaceous granitoids.
Tin deposits formed during Late Cretaceous magmatism have
two origins: (1) by fractionation and assimilation in intrusions
belonging to the Late Cretaceous magmatic arc and (2) by anatexis
of peraluminous metasediments caused by crustal thickening and
associated mantle-derived intrusions in the backarc area.
Palaeocene magmatic arc (Cu, Au-Ag; Table 12.4)
Minor sulphide mineralization in the Rawas cluster occurs within
iron-rich skarns at the contact with Woyla Group metasediments
and disseminated within the Bukit Rajah Granite emplaced at
54 • 2 Ma ( K - A r method, JICA 1988). Nearby is the Sungei
Tuboh 1.76 Mt (estimate) skarn deposit with copper and precious
metals which formed at the contact of a quartz monzonite at
c. 40 • 2 Ma ( K - A r method, JICA 1988).
The alluvial gold in the Rawas cluster is found in the vicinity of
quartz veins, and associated with the sericitization and chloritiza-
tion of Woyla Group metasediments, which also may be related to
Palaeocene intrusions (Miswar & Suherman 1991).
Late Eocene-Early Miocene magmatic arc (Table 12.4)
A rare example of mineralization associated with this Early
Neogene volcanic arc occurs in the Breueh cluster NW of Banda
Aceh. Disseminated sulphides and quartz veins are related to the
intrusion of a sub-volcanic diorite body dated at 19 _+ 1 Ma (on
hornblende by K - A r method) (Bennett et al. 1981a).
Miocene-Pliocene magmatic arc (porphyry Cu, Mo;
Table 12.5 and Fig. 12.8)
Several porphyry-type mineral occurrences (Danau Diatas, Siuluk
Deras and Danau Dipatiampat) were located as the result of
exploration for porphyry copper deposits in the early-1970s (van
Leeuwen 1978) (Exploration Phase 2 of van Leeuwen 1994)
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160 C H A P T E R 12

0
0o

6 % "d 9~ o
>6
~o'., o~
~~:~_
r~ r..) >

~,=,~ ~~
~~_ ~ .~ ~ ~- ~; ~ ~ . - o = ,_,

~ ~b~ ~ ~ .. dE~ ~|
r_.#h

[..;

! ~ ~._=~
~~ ~+,
~ .= ~ -~,-~
, ~+~

I I
6,., <
I I I I I I

1=
.o

~ .- ,-, :,_, ._ ,.-.._

.~ o , = - ~ ~ ~

..--.,
c'--.
+1
I
~, ..~ ..

b
0 9~ .~ ~ .- 9 0 ~ ~ ~
~ = >-.'~ i ~ ~. -
~

,,-,! ~5 <

E ~u ~ ~'-
~
~a o .=
~=~~ ~ ~. ~ ~-~o .~-~ ~ ~-
-~.i ~~ ~~ ~ ~.
o ~ ~ .o g. <
N 9

r,~
~~ ~ < ~~ ~,~<

~-,
~

~ ~o ~ ~ ~ . ~ i ~ ~.~ ~E ~E
~ ~ -~ -~ - ~ ~ -~ -~ -=
L

h
~
~z
< < < <<

e~ z
z< ~
t,'q ~<
~<
[... m ~
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 161

C7~
,....., C3~

eq

~., e-
<~

O 9 t"q

= ~ ~ o=

-~ ~ :2 ~
..,-

c.~.

~0
y~
I I I

,...,

-~o~.

. ,...,

tz~t)

,,...,

9" ~ 9

[...,
3: <

z
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2.<
l.J

"3
I

<
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

162 CHAPTER 12

9~oE &~ L I ~ I I I

JURASSIC - CRETACEOUS MINERALISATION

4 ~-

JLEH

"- I

Lake
-2ON 2 ~-

anun( MUARASIPONGI ~-....~ ~

N;
"PASAM,a

TIMBULAN <5

-O- G O L D METAL ~L U ~ I ~ eiGADA

Pagt DANAU RANAU
-2~ O BASE KELAYANG
~ TIN
Cr CHROMITE '9

IIIIII
Late Cretaceous Plutons
4 ~_
-4~ Elm__.Mid-Jurassic to
Early Cretaceous Plutons
Woyla Group
,,,% -%\
(Arc and Accretionary Complex) SEPUTI
Padean
I I Pre-Cretaceous basement
-6 ~
% 6 ~_

0 500km
F i g . 12.7. M i n e r a l o c c u r r e n c e s a s s o c i a t e d
with the Mid-Jurassic-Early Cretaceous and
96~ 98~ 100" 102~ lO4~ 106~
I I I I I I t h e L a t e C r e t a c e o u s m a g m a t i c arcs.

(Fig. 12.2); others were found during regional mapping (Tangse
and Dusun) and in the 1990s. The Miocene suite of equigranular
and porphyritic dioritic and granitic intrusions, with C u - M o min-
eralization, are widely distributed in the Barisan Mountains
of western Sumatra, but the mineralization is of very low grade.
Porphyry-type mineralization is usually associated with arc-
parallel fault sets of the Sumatran Fault System, with plutons
emplaced within segments and jogs of the main fault zone, or
like the Lokop cluster in fault splays, although some dioritic
centres, such as Tinjoen, are not associated with important faults.
Van Leeuwen et al. (1987) have described the extensive inves-
tigation of the Tangse C u - M o prospect which was discovered
during the geological and geochemical mapping programme of
the North Sumatra Project (Young & Johari 1978). A large miner-
alized system is present at the Tangse prospect, but at the time of
the investigation the grades were not economic. C u - M o mineral-
ization is present between strands of the main Sumatran Fault
System in altered, stockwork-fractured, multiphase (three sequen-
tial sets of intrusion were distinguished) porphyritic intrusions in
the Eocene age Gle Seukeun Igneous Complex. The older group
of porphyritic quartz diorites is the most extensive, with the intru-
sion and the alteration-mineralization having cooled between 13
and 9 Ma. A core of early chalcopyrite and biotite alteration is sur-
rounded by a halo of chlorite and epidote. These were overprinted
by two structurally controlled quartz-sericite-pyrite assemblages
of which the chlorite assemblage is enriched in Cu and Mo. The
mineralized system has been weathered and oxidized and there
is patchy secondary Cu enrichment.
The Tangse prospect is of particular interest as an example of
dated Miocene multiphase porphyritic igneous intrusions in the
Sumatran Fault System. The geochemistry and low intial Sr
isotope values shown by the Tangse porphyries indicate that
they represent a subduction-related, mantle-derived, normal-K
calc-alkaline suite, which shows little evidence of sialic crustal
contamination (van Leeuwen et al. 1987). The significance of
such multiphase intrusions is the potential for successively fractio-
nated melts with enriched metal contents to be emplaced in the
same host, via the same magma conduit system, resulting in
potential mineral deposits of economic value. This setting
occurred in the overlaps and jogs between transcurrent faults in
Sumatra during the Neogene, as at Tangse and probably also the
Lolo Batholith. The mineralization at the Tangse stock (van
Leeuwen et al. 1987) was completed before the intrusion of the
dacite porphyry dykes, which had cooled to c. 500 ~ by
9.97 4- 0.50 Ma (magmatic hornblende by K - A r method). This
suggests that the vertical and horizontal movements along the
Sumatran Fault System which initially facilitated the magma
conduit system at Tangse may have disrupted this system by
c. 10 Ma and was followed by rapid uplift. The Tangse multiphase
stock may be younger than the Lolo Batholith, which is composed
of equigranular granodiorites only locally megacrystic, where the
associated minor skarn mineralisation probably dates from the
emplacement at c. 15 Ma (40 Ar/~39 Ar determinations by Imtihanah
2OOO).
The only other porphyry copper prospects that have been drill-
tested to date are the Upper and Lower Tengkereng and Upper
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METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 163

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164 CHAPTER 12

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 165

I I [ I ~ I I I
96~ 98~ k"~ ~ "~O-PUOCENEMINERAUSATION
\,-N--. " ~ ~ . O Mineral Locality
GEUNTEUT~ ~
NGSET-",,

UNI~ q~__Ld

-2~ (,x,.. " ~ (-,xLake'S,. ~,,. ~ 2~

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-4 ~ "~ON,,~r "-..._..-'~TAMBANG
SAWAH)

TANJUNG SAKTI

_6~
500km
Fig. 12.8. Mineral occurrences and
prospects associated with the Miocene-
96~ 100~ 102~ 104~~ 106~ Pliocene mineralization.
I I I I "%, I

Ise-Ise in the Dusun cluster. The three Dusun cluster deposits
(Dalimunthe et al. 1997a, b) are associated with small (up to
550 x 3 0 0 m 2) multiple intrusive diorite-tonalite porphyry
stocks. Alteration is highly telescoped with progressive overprint-
ing of advanced argillic and phyllic alteration assemblages. Quartz
stockwork veining varies from weak (1-10%) to intensive (up to
50%). The quartz stockwork is typically barren or only weakly
mineralized. Sulphide mineralization consists of pyrite, covel-
lite-chalcolite, lesser bornite and chalcopyrite and minor molyb-
denite. In contrast to Tangse the molybdenum content is
negligible, whereas gold values are relatively high (0.17-
0.38 g t-~ Au).
It has been suggested that the general low tenor of the porphyry
copper occurrences found to date in Sumatra may be due to the
poor copper content of the crust that was subducted beneath the
island during the Neogene (Katili 1974b) or because the process
of subduction was too young to have generated suitable melts
(Hutchison & Taylor 1978). Another possible explanation is that
the Neogene subduction occurred (most of the time) at an even
velocity, a condition which is not conducive to the generation of
large, high grade deposits (Sillitoe 1997).
Neogene magmatic arc (Au-Ag; Table 12.6 and Fig. 12.9)
Mining of primary deposits on the West Coast of Sumatra and in
the Lebong cluster was interrupted in 1941. Subsequently mining
has never reached pre-war production levels, with only Lebong
Tandai being reopened. Most of the abandoned mines were rein-
vestigated and drilled during the late 1980s, but extensions to
the ore bodies at Mangani and Lebong Donok were not found at
depth (van Leeuwen 1994). A number of new gold occurrences
in Sumatra were found during the various COW investigations
(1985 onwards), of which Bukit Tembang reached the mining
stage while exploration is at an advanced stage at two others
(Way Linggo and Martabe).
The dating, quantity and source of the gold mineralization of
many prospects remains poorly understood, because their per-
ceived low economic potential has discouraged detailed study.
In Table 12.6 the times of mineralization are estimates, based on
the dating of host lithologies and intrusions, although the mineral-
ization sequences are better documented. An exception is the gold
mineralization at Lebong Donok for which K - A r ages between
1.2 and 1.3Ma were quoted by Henley & Etheridge (1995),
which is a similar to the age to the Cirotan epithermal system in
west Java, where adularia was dated by the K - A t method at
1.7 Ma (Milesi et al. 1994). This data places Neogene gold miner-
alization in Sumatra, at least in part, in the period after 3.5 Ma in
an interval of tectonic reorganization following the collision of the
Philippine Arc and the Eurasian Plate (Barley et al. 2002).
Neogene epithermal precious metal deposits in Sumatra are
classified following White & Hedenquist (1990), using the vein
and alteration mineralogy and the form of the ore body, to infer
the fluid chemistry which controlled ore formation. The high sul-
phidation type reflects relatively oxidised ore fluids, and the low
sulphidation type reflects relatively reduced ore fluids. Examples
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

166 CHAPTER 12

,,...,

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 167

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168 C H A P T E R 12

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

M E T A L L I C M I N E R A L DEPOSITS 169

I I
96~ 98 ~
NEOGENE GOLD MINERALISATION
" ~ GOLD DEPOSIT TYPE
O t High sulphidation

MIWAH \ ~1~ Low Sulphidation

ABONGx Sediment hosted

4ON !
IAK 4 ~ --

I:'~'~~'~':~
~':"~:~I Jurassic-Cretaceous
ii~i;iii~:iii~iiii:iii~iiil Woyla Group

2~_

""'" ~ SIHAYO

/KIN~
"7 MANGANI c~ 0 ~ --

cBUKIT BULA"
~9 / I
' /G SALIDA
9 BULANGS I
F'~ i .._.,
)
BANGKO 2~_

IKIT TEMBANG

4~_
I ~l "'": " d"(TI I
tlUARADUA
Seamount
INDIAN-AUSTRALIAN <b
WAY L I N G ( ~ ~PUNG
KOTAAGUNC ~il~ TANJUNG-
O C E A N I C PLATE ~ 7 ~ " KARAN G
~APAI
6~ 500km
)n \ %. ~ . Fig. 12.9. Mineral occurrences, prospects
96~ 98~ 100o and former mines related to the Neogene
1012~'~ 104~
l
I I I gold mineralization.

of the latter type are commonly found in the southern half of the
island, concentrated along two lineaments or axes. An Outer
Neogene Gold Axis, linking the Salida and Kotaagung clusters
with concentrations in the Lebong and West Coast Districts of
van Bemmelen (1949), and an Inner Neogene Gold Axis, linking
the Mangani and Tanjungkarang clusters can be distinguished
(Machali et al. 1997) and are represented predominantly by
'classic' quartz-vein type deposits (Fig. 12.9). To date only three
high-sulphidation type deposits have been found. All are located
in northern Sumatra and are recent discoveries (Martabe, Miwah
and Meluak). They represent fossil geothermal systems rich in
magmatic volatiles. A study of the present-day hydrothermal
systems in Sumatra by Hochstein & Sudarman (1993) shows
that about 20% fall into this category. A third type of deposit com-
prises sediment-hosted mineralization found at Abong and Sihayo.
The majority of Neogene epithermal gold occurrences in
Sumatra are hosted in Tertiary volcanics and sediments which
rest on the Woyla Group (Fig. 12.9). There are exceptions, as in
the Meluak, Martabe, Mangani and Bangko clusters where the
Woyla Group is not present. The spatial relationship between
many of the epithermal gold deposits and the Woyla Group in
Sumatra and Western Java was observed by Carlile & Mitchell
(1994), who suggested that this relationship may be related
indirectly to the arc reversal and emplacement of the oceanic vol-
canic arcs in the Woyla Group onto the Sundaland margin in the
Cretaceous.
The focusing of fluid flow, favourable permeability and fault
structures controlling the emplacement of intrusions helps to
explain the concentration of epithermal occurrences in the
Neogene Gold Belt. Evidence of hydrothermal outflow in
the Inner Axis is illustrated by the presence of sinters, as in the
Bangko cluster. In some instances this outflow may derive from
the Outer Neogene Gold Axis in the elevated Barisan Mountains.
The geomorphic outflow of thermal waters from the Barisan
Mountains also contributes to the low temperature reservoirs of
thermal water in the Tertiary sedimentary basins in the back arc
area (Hochstein & Sudarman 1993).
In southern Sumatra several precious metal clusters are associ-
ated with arc-parallel master fault segments of the Sumatran Fault
System (e.g. Tanjungsakti, Way Linggo and Martabe). The
Mangani prospect is situated towards the termination of a major
segment of the Sumatran Fault System (Kavalieris et al. 1987).
The connection with arc-normal fault sets is occasionally
invoked, as at Miwah and the importance of faulting in the local-
isation of metal occurrences is well understood. Hovig (1914)
noted the fault-grid intersections controlling precious-metal min-
eralization in the Lebong cluster. Terpstra (1932) distinguished
four groups of quartz veins at the Salida mine, based on their
orientation, and Harris (1988) drew attention to the significance
of fault control of mineralisation in the Lebong and Mangani
clusters.
As mentioned above, the majority of the low sulphidation gold
deposits are located in southern Sumatra. Deposits in the Lebong
cluster (Fig. 12.10) are among the better known. Jobson et al.
(1994) described the Lebong Tandai deposit where underground
mining recommenced in 1983 and continued into the early
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
170 CHAPTER 12
Fig. 12.10. The Lebong cluster of precious metal prospects, occurrences and
former mines showing the 'Ketaun Zone' of eroded volcanic centres along which
some the Lebong cluster mineral localities are aligned. Geology after Gafoer
et al. (1992c) and Henley & Etheridge (1995).
1990s. The tabular, quartz-cemented, breccia ore bodies are loca-
lized along shears, which are related to an east-west sinistral fault
system (Jobson et al. 1994 had reservations) and to a NW dextral
fault system, by Jobson et al. (1994), using kinematic indicators.
The mineralized zone is orientated approximately east-west
over a strike of 4.3 km. It appears that no transpression or transten-
sion was involved. The dimensions and mineralogical details of
the breccia bodies are given in Table 12.6. Jobson et al. (1994)
found that precious-metal mineralization was the result of hydrau-
lic fracturing, associated with four phases of hydrothermal mineral
deposition. In contrast, the precious metals at Lebong Donok are
associated with quartz veins within the N W - S E Lebong Fault.
Dacite dykes and andesite dykes and sheets are present. The min-
eralization is on the flank of an eroded andesitic volcano (Henley
& Etheridge 1995) and is localized at the contact between the
sediments and the volcanics. Henley & Etheridge (1995) relate
the mineralization in the Lebong cluster (apart from
Tambang Sawah) to the 'Ketaun Structural Trend' (Fig. 12.10),
a tectonic-volcanic zone in which the individual ore bodies
were emplaced at different levels, with Lebong Tandai represent-
ing the oldest mineralization and deepest structural level. Henley
& Etheridge (1995) postulated that the breccia mineralization at
Lebong Tandai was due to later transtensional reactivation of
stepped thrusts, and that the Lebong Donok bonanza veins were
formed in a dilitant transtensional setting, closely associated
with the intrusion of dacite.
According to Gafoer et al. (1992c) the location of the Ketaun
Zone coincides with an incursion of the volcaniclastic Seblat For-
mation within the volcanic Hulusimpang Formation (Oligocene-
Miocene), and the volcanic centres are related to the Bal
Formation (Middle Miocene). Postulated thrusting in the Ketaun
Zone was presumably Pliocene in age, but while thrusts have
not been described elsewhere in the area, they could represent
the inversion of pre-existing normal faults associated with the
growth of the Barisan Mountain range.
It is difficult to evaluate the alternative interpretations of a
clearly complex geological setting with so little information on
the dating of the volcanic events and the mineralization. None
the less the presence of large high-grade gold deposits at
Lebong Donok and at Salida (Painan Formation volcanics on the
Woyla Group), both of which are at the interface between sedi-
ments and volcanics, is significant. The settings are reminiscent
of that at Hishikari in Japan where a fractured unconformity
between sediments and overlying volcanics was the focus of
repeated boiling of high-temperature fluids that resulted in mul-
tiple precipitation of precious metals (Izawa et al. 1990). It is note-
worthy that Lebong Donok and Hishikari show very similar
mineralization characteristics (Kavalieris 1988). The ore bodies
at Lebong Donok and Salida formed as a result of repeated
opening of the fault zones, but in Sumatra precious metal mineral-
ization was dispersed over larger areas, and in alignments, rather
than concentrated at a single locality as at Hisikari.
An unusual feature of several south Sumatra deposits, including
Lebong Tandai and Lebong Donok, Mangani and Way Linggo is
the occurrence of hypogene low-temperature calcium zeolites in
quartz veins. Lawless et al. (1995) suggest that these deposits
were formed in long lateral outflows, which facilitated extensive
de-gassing of the outflowing primary hydrothermal fluid to the
point where zeolites, rather than calcite, were deposited when
the fluids finally boiled. In contrast, in deposits which formed in
hydrothermal upflow zones, such as Bukit Tembang and Salida,
CO2 contents were relatively high and consequently calcite
tended to precipitate on boiling because of the de-stabilisation of
bicarbonate along with adularia in response to the resulting rise
in pH. Lawless et al. (1995) point out that if their model is
correct, it may be a useful exploration tool for distinguishing
upflow-zone from 'satellite' outflow-zone deposits which they
argue is important, as the latter can be expected to have a more
limited vertical extent.
Turning to high sulphidation deposits, the Martabe gold system
(Levet et al. 2003, Sutopo et al. 2003) was discovered in late 1997
by Normandy Anglo Asian Indonesia (subsequently taken over by
Newmont), using bulk leach extraction of gold (BLEG) sampling
techniques. It consists of a number of deposits over a strike length
of 7 km, hosted in a series of Tertiary volcanic and sedimentary
rocks (palaeontologically dated at 18-20 Ma), proximal to a
fault splay of the Sumatran Fault System. Episodic fault activity
has been responsible for pulses of high-level magmatism and the
development of multistage phreatomagmatic breccias, dacitic
flow dome complexes, hydrothermal alteration and gold mineral-
ization in this district. The fault system consists of a major NW to
NNW fault set accompanied by a conjugate set of NE extensional
faults, consistent with regional dextral strike-slip tectonics.
The most significant and best defined of the Martabe deposits is
the Purnama deposit, which has a resource of 3.7 million ounces of
gold and 46 million ounces of silver, making it the largest known
gold deposit in Sumatra. It is hosted by an intrusive diatreme that
has been injected along bedding planes within a sedimentary-vol-
canic unit. Multi-stage acid-leaching hydrothermal alteration
events have produced large volumes of vuggy to massive silica
with a tabular geometry. The silica zones are enveloped by
silica/dickite/alunite, grading out to silica-illite and peripheral
argillic alteration zones as the initial acidic vapour phase was pro-
gressively neutralized by the wall rocks and the groundwater.
There is a very strong correlation between gold mineralization
and silicification, as the latter has produced a vuggy permeable
host that was subjected to brittle fracture during subsequent tec-
tonic events. The mineralized zone at Purnama extends about
1.2 by 1 km. An early phase of low sulphidation silica pyrite
veining and chalcedonic silica with low gold grades, associated
with or immediately after the main acid sulphate alteration
event, was followed by a high sulphidation phase characterized
by enargite and luzonite mineralization and higher gold grades.
The alteration/mineralization sequence observed at Purnama,
i.e. acid-sulphide alteration-low sulphidation veining-high sul-
phidation veining is highly unusual for this type of deposit.
The low grade Miwah prospect is found in an extensive altera-
tion system in interbedded Pliocene sediments and andesitic volca-
nics, associated with arc-normal faulting and probably connected
to a buried porphyry-type intrusion (Williamson & Fleming 1995).
A linkage with a subduction zone beneath the North Aceh coast
was proposed by Rock et al. (1982) on the basis of the chemical
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS
composition of the volcanics and is favoured by Carlile & Mitchell
(1994). This interpretation is considered unlikely as although
seismicity is associated with this zone, oceanic crust is not
involved. The deposit is related like the rest of the precious
metal deposits, to the Sunda subduction zone as mapped beneath
Sumatra by Sieh & Natawidjaja (2000).
The geology of the Meluak area is dominated by the rift formed
by the subparallel Blangkejeren-Toru and K l a - A l a s Faults that
form part of the main Sumatran Fault Zone. Gold mineralization
is hosted by the Quaternary Kembar volcano and is associated
with hydrothermal breccias, massive and vuggy silica and c l a y -
pyrite alteration.
The Martabe and Meluak deposits have been discovered in areas
of good access without previously recorded gold occurrences. This
is probably due to the very fine particle size of the gold, which has
not led to obvious detrital gold signatures in the drainage, but is
amenable to discovery by chemical exploration techniques such
as the BLEG (bulk leach extraction of gold) method.
The two known sediment-only hosted gold deposits Abong and
Sihayo, are both located in northern Sumatra.
The Abong prospect (Hendrawan et al. 1996) consists of a NW-
trending zone, about 2300 m by 450 m, of mudstone/black shale
underlain by limestone, belonging to the Bampo Formation
(Upper Oligocene to Middle Miocene). Andesitic volcanics are
interbedded in this unit. An irregular zone of gold-bearing strati-
form jasperoid and silicified shale/siltstone with an average thick-
ness of about 9 m is present at, or close to the hanging wall of the
limestone. It shows variable development of fluid breccias grading
from crackle breccia to pseudo-conglomeratic breccia. Matrix-fill
material includes massive crystalline quartz, colloform quartz,
cockscomb quartz and illite. Gold mineralization is accompanied
by anomalous As (up to 6%), Ag (up to 680 ppm), Sb and Hg.
At Sihayo (R. Jones, written comm. 2004) drilling by Aberfoyle
Resources Ltd, and more recently by Oropa Limited, has outlined
a well-mineralized zone with a strike length of 1 km and up to
450 m wide containing an inferred gold resource of about
600 000 ounces. It is associated with NW-SE-trending faults as
well as orthogonal cross-structures that form part of a multi-
strand segment of the Sumatran Fault Zone. The zone is inferred
to extend discontinuously over more than 4 km of strike length
to adjacent prospects. Gold mineralization is hosted by regolith
and silicified breccias at, and near the top of a sequence of
Permian limestones, and in tuffaceous siltstone intercalations
within the limestones. The tuffaceous sediments vary from well-
bedded ash-rich siltstones to chaotic, slumped, clast-dominated
grits. The breccias were formed by karst dissolution under phreatic
conditions and subsequent collapse. Typical breccias comprise
clasts of mainly limestone, dark siltstone and andesitic volcanics
Table 12.7. Alluvial gold deposits in Sumatra
Cluster name Orebody form Ore elements
ANU-REUNGUET Alluvial Au derived from Au
quartz veins &
disseminated sulphides in
Woyla Group
MEULABOH River terrace sands & Au-Ag
(WOYLA) boulders derived from Cu-Hg
Woyla Group & Cr-Pt
epithermal min
SINGINGI Alluvial deposits occupy Au-Ag
(BENGKALIS) broad valleys cut in Pt??
Tertiary sediments
171
(from intercalated beds in the limestone), and coarse calcite frag-
ments. Dark silica alteration (jasperoid) replaces breccia matrix
material (fine phreatic sediments and tuffaceous sediments). Indi-
vidual jasperoid bodies can be highly irregular in shape. Sulphide
content is generally less than 1 or 2%, but locally exceeds 10%.
Pyrite is the dominantly sulphide phase and is invariably
accompanied by arsenopyrite and stibnite. In one of the adjacent
prospects late-stage epithermal white quartz with vuggy and
cockade textures forms the breccia matrix and occurs extensively
as veining and breccia fill.
Jasperoid alteration and mineralisation postdates Oligocene
sediments which disconformably overlie the Permian limestone,
but is otherwise undated. Later karst processes during the ?Late
Tertiary and Quaternary, have reworked the jasperoid material
into new breccias, some of which are fissure fillings.
Some workers distinguish two types of sediment-hosted gold
mineralization, as discussed by Sillitoe (1994): one generated dis-
tally with respect to intrusion-centred districts (eg. Sillitoe &
Bonham 1990); and the other the product of metamorphic dewa-
tering of thick sedimentary sequences, as exemplified by deposits
in the Carlin trend in Nevada (e.g. Seedorff 1991). Abong and
Sihayo are both located in areas that contain low-grade porphyry
copper deposits and may therefore belong to the former group.
However Sillitoe (1994) suggests that both groups may form a
single, broad genetic category.
The alignments in Sumatra range in scale from the N W - S E
'Neogene Gold Axes' (Fig. 12.9) and less common east-west
volcanic-tectonic alignments of mineralization as at Muaradua
and the Ketaun Zone in the Lebong cluster. Posavec et al.
(1983) described examples (see Fig. 13.25) of N W - S E align-
ments, representing the migration of older Quaternary to Recent
volcanic centres in response to progressive displacement along
the Sumatra Fault Zone. East-west alignments of active Quatern-
ary volcanic centres also occur, as at Bukitinggi. At Talang, and
some other active volcanoes, Posavec et al. (1983) found e a s t -
west aeromagnetic anomalies, thought to image large buried
dioritic intrusions, but the N W - S E volcanic alignments did not
show aeromagnetic signatures indicative of buried intrusions.
The migration of the loci of igneous intrusion and transcurrent
movement of fault blocks were both caused by the oblique subduc-
tion of the Indian-Australian Ocean crust beneath Sumatra
(Fig. 12.9). The Sunda subduction zone (Sieh & Natawidjaja
2000) and the Neogene Gold Belt are deflected by subduction of
the Investigator Fracture Zone. In the forearc the 'Pini Arch' has
formed above the trace of the Investigator Fracture Zone, which
also has been related by Page et al. (1979) to the genesis of the
Quaternary Toba Caldera Complex (Chesner & Rose 1991). The
Martabe deposit is situated above the projected eastern boundary
Time of mineralisation Resource & notes Reference
Quaternary Cameron et al. (1983);
Coulson et al.
(1986)
Quaternary Production (est. pre- 1942) Cameron et al. (1983);
980 kg Au/5 Mm 3 gravel. Bowles et al.
Resource: proven (1988) (1985);
11.5 M m3@ 196 mg m -3 Au Van Leeuwen
in 8 areas along Kr. Woyla (1994)
Source uncertain. Resource: 17.2 Mm3 @ Van Bemmelen
Epithermal quartz 149 mg/m 3 Au (1990); (1949);
found in dumps. production to 1958:2.2 t Au; Van Leeuwen
Most gold found in est. grade 120 mg m -3 Au; (1994)
upper alluvial 1973-75 resource of
succession 180 Mm3 @ 90 mg m-3 Au
 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015

172 CHAPTER 12

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METALLIC MINERAL DEPOSITS 173

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 Downloaded from http://mem.lyellcollection.org/ at Indiana University Libraries on May 11, 2015
174
of the Investigator Fracture Zone and may be an example of min-
eralization caused by the focussed release of volatiles into the
mantle wedge as a result of post-subduction faulting of hydrated
oceanic crust, which Fauzi et al. (1996) suggested might have con-
tributed to the formation of the Toba Caldera Complex. The pre-
sence of other irregularities in the ocean crust passing through
the Sunda subduction system in the past may have contributed
to stalling of the subduction system, which Sillitoe (1997) has
suggested creates the possibility for developing large ore deposits
in a volcanic arc by steady-state, feed-back processes.
Alluvial g o l d
Several of the larger alluvial gold deposits in Sumatra have been
mined in the post-war period (Table 12.7), but production has
never reached pre-war levels. This is because the deposits were
exhausted or because the resources were insufficient for commen-
cial exploitation, though attracting artisanal workers (as have
many of the disused primary deposits).
Coulson et al. (1986) suggested that the precious metals in the
Quaternary Anu-Renguet alluvial goldfield in northern Sumatra
were derived from quartz veins and disseminated sulphides that
formed during Mid-Cretaceous deformation of the Woyla
Group. Precious metals in the more economically interesting
coastal plain Woyla (Meulaboh) alluvial gold field were probably
sourced from skarns in the Woyla Group (Cameron et al. 1983).
The source of the gold in the Singingi alluvial field south of the
equator is probably weathered epithermal deposits.
Conclusions
Since 1967, Sumatra and adjacent islands have seen successive
phases of mineral exploration (Figs 12.2 & 12.3) for tin, bauxite
and porphyry copper deposits (1967-71), gold (1985-92 and
1995-97) and since 1998 (albeit on a reduced scale) base
metals, gold, and tin. These phases of exploration have led to
the discovery of numerous mineral occurrences and the testing
of the more important mineral deposits (Table 12.8 &
Fig. 12.1 l). The Indonesian Government has encouraged foreign
mineral industry private sector investment in exploration
through the Contracts of Work (COW) system. Although the
main focus of the exploration efforts of the private sector has
been in Eastern Indonesia and Kalimantan, Sumatra with its rela-
tive accessibility and lower cost of exploration, has seen a fair
amount of activity, especially during the most recent gold explora-
tion boom in 1995-97, when large tracts of land were covered by
COW applications (Fig. 12.3). Unfortunately, the boom was pre-
maturely terminated in the wake of the Bre-X scandal in Kaliman-
tan (Wells 1998). This scandal sapped the confidence of investors
in the Indonesian mining sector, and the sector has remained
CHAPTER 12
3~t LEBO
104 ~1 ~ LEBONGDONONG
I WAYU.GGo \ \%
E~176 9~ ~ MARTABE~
01 , ,
0.2 1 10 160
Resource (including past production) in millions of tonnes
Fig. 12.11. Gold resources, including past production and gold grades (g t l) of
some Sumatran gold deposits adapted from van Leeuwen (1994).
depressed subsequently due to the 1998-99 economic crisis, the
deterioration in the general investment climate, the issuance of
Forestry Law 41/1999 prohibiting opencast mining in protected
forest areas, which has effectively sterilized large parts of areas
with mining potential (>50% in Sumatra), and the emergence of
a strong anti-mining lobby. Despite these unfavourable conditions,
several companies have persisted with exploration projects.
Compared with other parts of Indonesia, exploration for metallic
minerals in Sumatra during the past 35 years has, on the whole,
produced disappointing results. In mainland Sumatra only one
deposit was discovered that reached the mining stage (Bukit
Tembang, a small Au deposit) and two old Dutch mines (Woyla
and Lebok Tandai) were reopened for a short time. From an econ-
omic point of view none of these were very successful. The most
significant discovery on the islands east of Sumatra is arguably the
small, but rich Nam Salu tin deposit, which was amenable to open
pit extraction.
The recent discoveries of several gold and lead-zinc deposits,
however, indicate that the mineral potential of Sumatra has not
yet been fully tested. It is encouraging that these include styles
of mineralization not previously known to exist in Sumatra.
Other novel categories of mineralization may be identified in the
future. The reinterpretation of the genesis of known occurrences
may lead to new exploration concepts, as may a better understand-
ing of the geological history and of the geological processes which
have occurred during the evolution of Sumatra.