The Giant Oyu Tolgoi Porphyry Copper-Gold Deposit Discovery History, South Gobi

Douglas John Kirwin

Ivanhoe Mines Ltd.,
51/278 Muang Ake, Tambon Lak 6, Amphoe Muang,
Pathumtani, Bangkok, Thailand, 12000

Introduction

The giant Oyu Tolgoi porphyry copper-gold deposit is the largest of several porphyry copper systems identified in the south Gobi region of Mongolia and northern China. Exploration by Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. has delineated a very large copper and gold resource which has highlighted the economic potential of the south Gobi as a major Palaeozoic porphyry province with in the framework of the Central Asian Mineral Belt.