Hoidas Lake

Hoidas Lake
Location Saskatchewan
Coordinates 59°55′41″N 107°49′12″W / 59.928°N 107.820°W / 59.928; -107.820Coordinates: 59°55′41″N 107°49′12″W / 59.928°N 107.820°W / 59.928; -107.820
Basin countries Canada

Hoidas Lake is a remote northern Canadian lake which lies approximately 50 kilometers north of Uranium City, Saskatchewan. Named in honor of Irvin Frank Hoidas, a Royal Canadian Air Force pilot officer killed in action during the Second World War when his Stirling W-7520 crashed near the Belgian town of Saint-Truiden,[1][2][3] it is the site of Canada's most advanced rare earth element (REE) mining project.[4]

Setting

Hoidas Lake lies in the Northern Rae Geological Province, in the general vicinity of many of Saskatchewan's large uranium mines.[4]

Mineralogy

The mineralogy of the Hoidas Lake rare earth deposit differs from most other such deposits in that it is hosted in veins of apatite and allanite.[5] Hoidas Lake also differs from other deposits in that it contains a significant amount of heavy rare earth elements, such as dysprosium.[4] This abundance of heavy REEs is significant, as there is a growing demand for the heavier rare earths in high-tech manufacturing (such as the use of dysprosium in the manufacturing of hybrid car components).[6][7] Mineralization is presumably hydrothermal, from an alkali or carbonatitic source at depth.[8]

The main prospective zone is composed of two dominant rock types: a variably deformed monzogranite and a granodioritic to tonalitic gneiss. Both are Paleoproterozoic to Archean in age.[9]

Resource scale

Ongoing work at Hoidas Lake has delineated a vein system (known as the JAK zone), which extends for at least a kilometer along strike.[8] The limits of the system have not been established along strike nor along dip,[8] and the zone's total extension is therefore unknown. The resource zone averages 75 m in width[10] and is composed of individual veins which, though ranging from one to eleven meters in thickness, average about three meters each.[8] Veins are continuous to 300 m depth and follow an anastomosing geometry.[8]

Estimates of the resource, given current delineations and assuming a 1.5% total rare earth cutoff, have established a presence of at least 286,000 tonnes of rare earth ore,[11] which is enough to supply more than 10% of the North American market for the foreseeable future.

Ownership

The Hoidas Lake claims are owned by Great Western Minerals Group, based in Saskatoon.[4]

References

  1. ↑ http://wwii.ca/memorial/world-war-ii/116809/pilot-officer-irvin-frank-hoidas/
  2. ↑ Irvin Frank Hoidas
  3. ↑ http://www.inmemories.com/Cemeteries/heverlee.htm
  4. 1 2 3 4 Hoidas Lake, Saskatchewan
  5. ↑ Salvi S, Williams‐Jones A. 2004. Alkaline granite‐syenite deposits. In Linnen RL, Samson IM, editors. Rare element geochemistry and mineral deposits. St. Catharines (ON): Geological Association of Canada. pp. 315‐341
  6. ↑ G, Nishiyama. "Japan urges China to ease rare metals supply." 8 November 2007. Reuters Latest News. 10 March 2008 <http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL08815827>
  7. ↑ Cox C. 2008. Rare earth innovation. [Internet]. Herndon (VA): The Anchor House Inc; [updated 2008 Feb 16; cited 2008 Mar 18]. Available from http://theanchorhouse.com
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 http://library2.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-01292010-141709/unrestricted/Halpin_K.pdf
  9. ↑ Geology of the LeBlanc-Wellington lakes area, eastern Zemlak Domain, Rae Province; in Summary of Investigations 2003, v. 2,Saskatchewan Geological Survey, Sask. Industry and Resources, Misc. Rep. 2003-4.2. Available through: http://www.er.gov.sk.ca/adx/aspx/adxGetMedia.aspx?DocID=11840,11458,11455,11228,3385,5460,2936,Documents&MediaID=36607&Filename=Ashton03_SOIMAP_West.pdf
  10. ↑ Pearson, J., (2006): Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. Assessment Report on the 2005-2006 Work Program, Hoidas Lake Rare Earth Project. Submitted to Saskatchewan Industry and Resources. Cited (at page six) in: http://library2.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-01292010-141709/unrestricted/Halpin_K.pdf
  11. ↑ http://www.gwmg.ca/html/projects/hoidas-lake/index.cfm
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