Geological Criteria for Porphyry Copper Exploration

Porphyry Cu deposits, containing ~80% of the world’s Cu resources, continue to be prime exploration objectives. The geological model for porphyry Cu deposits has developed progressively over the past century and, when applied to exploration, it successfully integrates empirical features with elements of porphyry Cu genesis as well as providing a template for interpretation of geochemical and geophysical data. This summary highlights some basic features of the porphyry Cu model that can be deployed at the area selection, prospect appraisal and detailed exploration stages, preparatory to considering methods that were critical to recent major discoveries. Sillitoe (2010) and references therein provide further geological details.