PROJECTS
SONGEA
Key facts
- Ownership:
- Wholly owned by Shanta Mining Corporation Limited (SMCL)
- Extent:
- Ten prospecting licences covering approx 439 km²
- Location:
- Mbinga and Songea Administrative Districts in the Ruvuma region of south-western Tanzania
- Project status:
- early
Project potential and prospects
Extensive airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys in 2008 have yielded valuable structural and geological information. The resultant imagery shows distinct uranium anomalism. As a result this work will be followed up in 2009 with scintillometry surveys.
Exploration summary
Exploration work completed:
- Preliminary rock (grab) geochemical sampling programs
- Airborne radiometric and magnetometry survey
- Initiation of a first pass handheld scintillometer traverse program, over a limited grid, targeting extensive uranium anomalism identified during the airborne radiometric survey.
Regional geology
The geology of the licence areas consists mostly of Usugaran metamorphic rocks and includes charnockitic and enderbitic granulite and gneiss. Locally, late orogenic granite and granodiorite also occurs. The Usugaran pegmatites contain tourmaline, sapphire, topaz, and garnet (rhodolite). Gem quality cordierite is also mined from high metamorphic grade (granulite facies) meta-sedimentary rocks.
The geology of the most westerly prospecting licence comprises a massif of layered ultramafics of late Proterozoic age which intruded into Usugaran Metamorphics; consisting of banded pyroxenite, gabbroic pyroxenite, pyroxenitic gabbro, gabbro, and granodiorite. Collectively the geological setting is referred to as the Lituhi complex. The complex crops out along the rugged hills from Ruanda to Lituhi village. The basement rocks are generally overlain by an extensive and thick sequence of Karoo Basin sedimentary rocks consisting of sandstone, mudstone, cross bedded sandstone, conglomerate and minor coal seams. Areas overlain by Karoo Basin lithologies are known to be prospective for uranium and coal.