In a recent breakthrough, researchers have made a significant discovery in the Tanchi Mountains on the north and south edges of the Qaidam Basin in Qinghai Province. An additional 43.2 tons of gold resources have been identified, potentially creating an economic value surpassing 20 billion dollars.
The Qaidam Basin, situated in the Haixi Mongolian-Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province, spans an area of 256,500 square kilometers. It stands as one of China's vital zones for energy and mineral resources, often referred to as China's "treasure trove."
According to the "China Mineral Resources Geological Gazetteer - Qinghai Volume - Popular Edition," by the end of 2017, Qinghai Province had identified gold reserves of 481.66 tons, with remaining resources amounting to 347.17 tons.
As of now, Qinghai Province has discovered 346 gold mineral sites, with the largest being the Dachang Gold Mine in Qumalai County, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, with reserves reaching 108.63 tons.
The Tanchi Mountains gold mine on the northern edge of the Qaidam Basin and the Wulonggou gold mine on the southern edge are the most representative large to super-large gold deposits in the Chaidamu northern edge metallogenic belt and the eastern Kunlun metallogenic belt in Qinghai Province.
This research marks the first discovery of a second ore enrichment space in the deep part of a large gold mine, indicating the potential of the large to super-large gold mines on the northern and southern edges of the Qaidam Basin in Qinghai Province to form world-class gold deposits akin to the "Jiaojia-style" in Shandong Province, thus opening avenues for direct development and utilization.
