Hydrothermal Gold Mineralization And Structural Controls Near May Hibey, Northwestern Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

Ezana Mining Development Company has recently reported presence of gold mineralization near May Hibey area, western Tigray, northern Ethiopia. It is in association with hydrothermal quartz veins within the Neoproterozoic low grade basement rocks, metavolcanics and metasedimentary rocks. Structural data suggests four phases of deformations and NE-SW trending foliation is the prominent one among others. Among different generations of veins, NNE, NS and NNW trending third generation quartz veins are gold-bearing and presence of a narrow shear zone with dextral sense of movement trending NW-SE is significant interms of mineralization. Hydrothermal alterations are dominated by chloritization and sericitization. Core samples from shear zone within the sericite-quartz schist and quartz porphyry rocks shows presence of pyrite, pyrrhotite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, galena and gold in decreasing order of abundance. Gold mineralization is closely associated with the sericite and carbonization alteration zone. Based on mineral association, alteration, deformation, texture, and paragenetic scheme, it is suggested that the mineralization is a syn-orogenic variety formed in an island arc tectonic setting.