Prospecting for gold in Fiji began well over a hundred years ago and the first reported discovery was in the gravels of the Navua River in 1868 by Charles Gurney. Although there are numerous occurrences and prospects for gold throughout Fiji, there is as yet only the one operating mine, Emperor, though smaller mines have operated in three other parts of Fiji. WaimanuTraces or colours of gold have been known since the end of the last century from panning of gravels in the Rewa River. Intensive investigations led to the discovery of the Waimanu alluvial gold located at the upper reaches of the Waimanu River about 25 km northwest of Suva. Sluicing and dredging operations were carried out, but by 1935 these were abandoned. From 1909 to 1935 several syndicates worked the area but only about 220 g of gold was recovered. WainadoiThe Wainadoi gold mineralisation was found in the early 1900s. The Wainadoi deposit is located at Wainawi Creek, a tributary of the Waimanu, in south-central Viti Levu. Gold was found in the free form and a brief period of mining in 1941-42 produced about 850 g of gold. Colo-i-SuvaIn the latter part of 1935, payable gold was reported from the headwaters
of Savura Creek. Colo-i-Suva Prospect is located about 15 km NW of Suva. Mistry MineThe gold mineralisation at Mistry was probably discovered in 1937. The Mistry Mine area is located about one kilometre east of Nabila village near the west coast of Viti Levu. Uciwai Road Prospect (copper, lead and zinc mineralisation) and Koroisa (manganese and iron mineralisation) are close by. Ten years later, mine development consisted of excavation of an adit 90 m long and an open-cut about 45 m long and 12 m deep. From 1947 to 1958, 23.3 kg of gold was recovered from 1720 t of ore. At the present time the search for payable gold is concentrated at Faddy's Prospect, a mineralised area about 1.8 km NNE of Mistry Mine. The 1989 estimate for mineralisation at Faddy's is a measured resource totalling 920 000 tonnes at 4.9 g/t, using a cut-off grade at 2 g/t. Kingston (Navilawa)Gold was discovered about one kilometre southeast of Navilawa village in the upper Sabeto River Valley, Viti Levu, around the early part of this century. By 1906, prospectors had developed a shaft and a drive in the search for mineralisation and this area was known as the Kingston Mine. The area was explored for copper but gold values were found to be relatively high - up to 80 g/t was obtained from sampling. From 1935 to 1936 exploration was mainly for gold. Exploration activity ceased in the late 1940s but resumed in the last three decades. All of the activity has been exploration rather than mining. Vuda ProspectAlluvial gold was found at the mouth of the Vuda River early this century. The search for the source of this gold led to the discovery of in situ primary gold lodes in the upper Vuda River Valley. The Vuda Prospect is located about 10 km south of Lautoka city and east of Vuda Point, west Viti Levu. Sporadic prospecting continued until 1935 following which interest in the area increased in the wake of significant gold finds at Yanawai and Tavua. The first Mining Lease was issued in January 1938 to Natalau Prospecting Syndicate. Over the years various licence holders and Mining Lease holders developed shafts, drives and adits. Mining practically came to an end in 1954. Estimated production, which was probably mostly from the Natalau workings, was about 880 oz (27.3 kg) of gold. Since discovery the area has remained one of the significant gold areas in Fiji and is still a focus of exploration. Tavua Goldfield (Vatukoula)Gold specks were found in the alluvial deposits at Nasivi River during the gold rush period in Fiji at the turn of the century. Persistent prospecting by William Borthwick up the Nasivi River was rewarded when he discovered payable gold in Lololevu Creek on 5 November 1932. A small gold rush followed but by 1936 most of the field was controlled by three companies: Emperor Gold Mining Co. Ltd (operating to present day); Loloma (Fiji) Gold Mines NL and Dolphin Mines Ltd. Emperor took complete control of mining operations in 1956. In 1983 a joint-venture partnership was formed between Emperor and Western Mining Corporation of Australia. This deal allowed Western Mining a 20% ownership of the current Vatukoula workings (SML54). A further gold lode was found south of Vatukoula and this was opened in 1986 (SML 55) with Emperor and Western Mining each having equal ownership of the Nasomo joint venture. Western Mining is the manager for both operations. Other known gold mineralisation in the Tavua Goldfield includes the prospects at Waikatakata, Natogo, Rabulu Gap, Nasivi, Big Hill, Waikubukubu, Patel's Prospect and Homeward Bound. Production from Vatukoula began in 1933 and by 1989, 133 925 kg of gold had been recovered from 14.18 million tonnes of ore. WainivesiThe discovery of massive base-metal sulphides in a deposit at Wainivesi, with good gold credits, was made in the early 1930s. The area is located about 14 km northwest of Korovou town, east Viti Levu. Some production was achieved in the late 1950s but as for the Colo-i-Suva mineralisation, a payable gold deposit has not yet been established. DakunibaThe gold mineralisation at Dakuniba was discovered by local prospectors in the early 1940s, probably around the same time as other numerous small occurrences in Fiji were discovered. Dakuniba is located about a kilometre north of Dakuniba village, near Vatudamu Point, Vanua Levu. Gold grades ranged from 3 to 11 g/t. Since discovery the area has remained prospective but is underexplored. WaimotuThe Waimotu gold mineralisation was discovered by local prospectors around 1938 and is located about half a kilometre inland from the coastal village Waimotu, Natewa Bay, Vanua Levu. Subsequent exploration was carried out by Emperor Gold Mining Co. Ltd in 1940. Gold grades of up to 22 g/t have been obtained but a payable ore body has eluded prospectors and explorers. Yanawai Goldfield (Mt Kasi)Gold was discovered in the Vuci River around 1885. In the 1920s Mr E. Cresswell located a mineralised area at Navakadrakala which became known as Creswell's Workings, and an initial crushing yielded about 75 g of gold from 50 t of ore. Later crushing unfortunately did not produce any gold. Sporadic prospecting continued until the workings were closed in 1923. In November 1929 two prospectors discovered barite-rich boulders, in Yanawai River, carrying about 60 g/t gold. The source of the barite was traced to a ridge top which hosted auriferous volcanic material. The Mt Kasi gold mine was established from this discovery. The mine is at an elevation of about 400 m above sea level and is located about 4 km northeast of Dawara village, Wailevu. Mt Kasi Mines Ltd began production in 1932 and between 1932 and 1946 a total of 1803 kg of gold was won from 266 200 t of ore. As far as is known, the first gold to be exported from Fiji, the product of local mining, officially notified, with royalty and duty paid, was from Mt Kasi and was exported on 8 July 1932. In its heyday, the mine consisted of an open cut and an underground mine with four levels, and employed more than 300 people. The company ceased operations in late 1946. [View Map of Prospects and Mines of Viti Levu & Vanua Levu] OtherOccurrences of primary gold mineralisation and gold associated with base-metal sulphides have been identified in Viti Levu at Namosi; inland from Sigatoka; around Nadi and Rakiraki and in the interior of Viti Levu around Lutu (Wainimala). In Vanua Levu numerous gold prospects are dotted all over the northeastern third of the island, and others are known around Natewa Bay and at Naduri. Gold has also being reported in the Yasawas, Kadavu and the Lomaiviti group, and on Vanua Balavu. Alluvial gold has been reported from the Rewa Delta; Nasivi River mouth; Vuda River mouth and foreshore area; Waimanu alluvial deposit; and Yanawai River mouth and coastal flats. All of the alluvial occurrences are considered uneconomic, though only the Waimanu deposit is well documented. The Waimanu alluvial gold occurrence received much interest from 1909 to 1935. Trenches and shafts were dug in an effort to evaluate the economic potential of the occurrence. The government initiated further investigation work in the early 1960s. Since then the area has received sporadic attention from various mining companies. Up to now, no gold is known to have been mined from the area on a commercial level. Local and international companies continue to explore in Fiji risking venture capital in the hope of finding gold mineralisation of sufficient grade and tonnage to be economically mined. The risks are substantial and so are the amounts of money spent on exploration - from 1985 to 1989 exploration companies spent between $2 million and $8 million dollars per year, mostly on gold exploration. As part of that exploration, some prospects such as Mount Kasi and Cirianiu are undergoing detailed exploration but it should be noted that the only operating gold mine is still Emperor - and that has been known since 1932. TABLE 1. MINERAL EXPLORATION IN FIJI
FURTHER READING
Suliana Niurou Director: A.Rahiman, March 1990 |
