NOTES ON THE DISCOVERY OF BAUXITE, GOLD AND KAOLIN DEPOSITS IN GHANA, WEST AFRICA

In 1963, after graduating with a degree in geology, I began an experience in the Peace Corps that shaped my thinking and love of mineral exploration for the rest of my life. One of the three mineral deposits described in this paper is providing substantial income in the form of royalties to the government of Ghana. The two other deposits are large and will eventually be mined, producing additional royalties.

My Peace Corps assignment was to explore a little known bauxite occurrence from a jungle camp in the peneplained hills above Kibi in south central Ghana. Based on Empire hand drilling, the reserve on Atiwiredu and Asiakwa hills, through 1973, is 132 million tons, with an average grade of 44% Al2O3 and 3% SiO2. A feasibility study was completed and numerous companies have evaluated the data.

One drillhole encountered nearly pure kaolin on Atiwiredu Hill. A total of three kaolin deposits was discovered in swamps on this hill and a resource of 1.5 million cubic meters was later determined. These are the largest known kaolin deposits in Ghana.

After earning a MS and working as a consultant for a number of years, in 1990 I returned to Ghana to explore for gold, and in 1993 opened an office for International Gold Resources (IGR). The first property interest IGR acquired was the old Bibiani mine which produced 2.5 million ounces of gold between 1891 and 1970, from two high grade veins in Lower Birimian (Lower Proterozoic age) sericite schists, greywackes and intrusive rocks. Drilling of angle holes to 250m below the surface on 30m fences began in early 1994, with a reverse circulation (RC) tracked drill. A bankable feasibility study completed in mid 1995, based on 166 RC and DD drillholes, showed 2.78 million ounces of gold in three resource categories.

When I first visited Bibiani in 1990, it was a dying town with extreme poverty and unemployment. IGR completed numerous projects over the years to better the lives of the townspeople. IGR was sold to Ashanti Goldfields Company, Ltd., a Ghana based company, in 1996, who began production from an open pit mine in 1998 and continues to produce gold profitably.

My Peace Corps experience taught me the ability to work independently with the resources at hand under difficult conditions. It prepared me to return to Ghana to help the people benefit from its natural resources. The Ghanaian people gave me the help, respect, and unexpected love for which I am grateful. Aikoo