Musonoi Mine
Metatorbernite from the Musonoi Mine
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| Location | |
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 Musonoi mine
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| Province | Katanga Province |
| Country | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Coordinates | 10°42′39″S 25°23′56″E / 10.710876°S 25.399017°ECoordinates: 10°42′39″S 25°23′56″E / 10.710876°S 25.399017°E |
| Production | |
| Products | Copper, |
The Musonoi mine is a set of open-cut pits near Kolwezi from which copper and other metals have been extracted since the 1940s. The mining complex is located in the Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kolwezi is about 320 kilometres (200 mi) northwest from Lubumbashi, the provincial capital.
The Kolwezi ore district lies near the northwest limit of the Katanga Copperbelt. It holds over half of the copper and cobalt in the copperbelt. The Musonoi mine is located in a dolomitic inferior formation of the Roan Group, Katanga Supergroup, from the Precambrian IV age. It is deeply affected by folds and thrust nappes.
Two ore bodies about 10 metres (33 ft) thick are known, containing copper, cobalt, manganese and uranium. The mine has a rare assemblage of uranyl selenite minerals, and has palladium minerals.
The Dikuluwe mine near Musonoi has been exploited since prehistoric times. Monseigneur de Hemptinne watched Yeke people working this mine as late as 1924. They would work in the dry season, stopping when the first rains arrived. The mining camp was near a stream where millet could be planted. Women and children collected malachite from the surface, while men used iron picks to excavate pits and shafts, using fire to crack the rocks when needed. The mines were between 10 metres (33 ft) and 15 metres (49 ft) deep with galleries up to 20 metres (66 ft) long. The ore would be sorted and then taken to a nearby stream for concentration before being smelted.
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Wikipedia