01 STAR2016 Cook Islands - Pacific Communitystar.gsd.spc.int/meeting_docs/presentations/Session1-1_Seabed...STAR 2016 TanoaInternational Hotel, ... the Cook Islands Minerals ... •

STAR 2016Tanoa International Hotel,

Nandi, Fiji

Recovery and Development of

the Cook Islands Minerals

Database for SBMA

Marino Wichman- GIS Officer

Topics to Cover

• Background

• Historical Information

• GIS Platform/ Data Management

• Future Work

Cook Islands Manganese Nodules

• Water depth:

4,500~5000+m

• Area of EEZ:

2 million km2

• Area of nodules ≥+5 kg/m2:

750,000 km2

• Target metals: Cobalt, Nickel, copper, manganese, titanium, REE and possibly Vanadium

• Cobalt grade: 0.41%

• Mn Nodule Resource Base -

10,267 Mt (Cronan 2013) -Co-Mn-Ti-REE- V resource

� Jim Hein - REE assessment report� Kenex – GIS compilation, predictive

modelling and probabilistic resource estimates

Seabed Minerals in the Cook Islands

Historic Cruises

• Considerable research of EEZ waters from various government research providers since the 1960’s – USSR, US, European Countries, New

Zealand, Japan

• Major survey of S Pacific 1985-2005 Japan/SOPAC cooperative study

Historic Research• Cruises:

– 1974 – RV Tangaroa– 1977 - ORSTOM, Nomea – R.V. Coriolis– 1978 - ORSTOM, Noumea – R.V. Sonne– 1976- 1981-CCOP/SOPAC – 1980- JICA – Hakurei-Maru No. 2– 1983- JICA –Hakurei_Maru GH83– 1985/86- JICA/SOPAC –Hakurei-Maru No. 2– 1986- Australian and New Zealand Governments – 1987 – Thomas Washington Cruise– 1990- JICA/SOPAC –Hakurei-Maru No. 2– 1997 - HMNZS Tui Cruise– 2000- JICA –Hakurei-Maru No. 2

Various Integrated Feasibility Studies

In the beginning…

• 2013 – Cronan located and compiled all historic and recent research on geotechnical and geochemical data on the Cook Islands seabed minerals estate.

– Summarised the various key research programmes.– Developed a geological model explain the variability in Cook

Islands nodules

• Calculated a revised resource base of 10.3 Mt.

– Revised in-ground metal content based on abundance and mineral grade maps prepared for the report.

• Concluded not only a Co, Ni, Cu resource, should now be inclusive of Ti-REE resource also.

Recent Data Compilations

• 2013 Kenex to digitise all spatial data into a GIS compatible data base for undertaking a statistical analysis.

– Combination of different datasets (free, public, contracted etc).

– Followed this with a mineral prospective study to model the seabed mineral resource using GIS statistical tools and refine the Cronan geological model.

• The spatial analysis identified the key geological parameters as important for predicting polymetallic nodules deposition in the CKI EEZ.

– Source, Transport, Trap, Deposition

• Identified prospective areas not yet adequately sampled.

– Developed a series of predictive maps including maps showing prospectivity and value.

Recent Data Compilations –GIS and Predictive Modelling

• 2014-Kenex built on existing work and undertook a probabilistic valuation

– utilising a statistical approach on the data. Various tools are used to underpin correlations between variables.

– Weights of evidence table.

• Based on the results of the preliminary statistical analysis, Inverse Distance Weighting interpolation was selected as an appropriate geostatistical method to use.

• A number of resource estimates based on derived probabilities and grades and in-ground $ values are identified.

Probabilistic Valuation

• A number of polymetallic nodules from the Japan/SOPAC cruises 1990-2000 located and analysed by USGS for a range of metal elements (67) including REE.

• The nodules contain high mean contents of Co (0.38%), Ni (0.38%), Ti (1.28%), and total rare earth elements plus yttrium (REY; 0.168%), and also high contents of Mo, Nb, V, W, and Zr.

• The CKI EEZ shows a significant resource potential for critical metals due to the high-priced and high-demand for these metals that are enriched in the deposit, the high nodule abundance, which will allow for smaller footprint for a 20-year mine site and therefore smaller environmental impact.

Recent Data Compilations –Hein et al 2015

GIS Platform and Storage

Future• Cadastre database

• Management of Licenses and incoming data

Meitaki Maata

3D Video