Geographical Location:
Zenit Madencilik San. ve Tic. A.Ş.'s project covers an area of 717.57 hectares within the mining license areas of IR-72400 (Access Number: 1158411) and IR-12743 (Access Number: 2045062) situated around Kütahya province, Tavşanlı district - Avcılar and Kavaklı villages, Simav district - Örencik-Dağardı and Evciler villages, where the establishment of the Tavşanlı Gold and Silver Mine continues within the EIA area.
Project History:
12.12.2019: EIA application was made for the Tavşanlı project.
11.02.2020: Public Participation Meeting was held in Örencik village.
08.10.2021: Positive EIA report was obtained.
27.11.2021: Urgent Expropriation decision was issued for the unsold lands within the project area by a Presidential decree.
15.04.2022: Forest permission for an area of 1,304,633.16 m2 was obtained.
10.08.2022: Non-agricultural land use permission was obtained. E-81882494-170.01-28759
22.02.2023: In the project where construction and installation works had commenced, a court decision was made to temporarily halt the execution upon the application of some NGOs and civilian citizens. As a result, the field operations have been stopped by the company.
14.06.2023: The relevant court, based on reports from two different expert committees, announced a rejection for the cancellation lawsuit against the Environmental Impact Assessment (ÇED) for the project. Construction and installation have been resumed from where they left off. The work is ongoing.
Geology:
The geological units of the Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic periods are distributed in and around the Kütahya province, where the project area is located. The base rocks comprise the metamorphic units of schists and marbles defined as cover rocks of the Menderes Massif, which is exposed to the south of the Simav Graben, and the ophiolitic rocks that have been intruded tectonically on these rocks as the Afyon Zone (Kaya, 1972; Gün et al., 1979; Okay, 1986).
The precious metal mineralization containing gold and occasionally silver in the area developed concerning three main geological units: Budağan Limestone, Jasperoid, and Dağardı Melange (Ophiolitic). The mineralization took place during or after the overlying of Budağan Limestone by Dağardı Melange along a low-angle thrust fault zone, resulting from hot hydrothermal solutions that reached the surface along the fault line, ornamenting the limestone and causing silicification to develop a localized and limited vein rock within the Jasperoid unit. It was transported by hydrothermal liquid and settled within the Jasperoid. The orientation of this formation is generally along the NNE and NE-SW lines. In some parts, the mineralization is observed to be deposited in pocket-like forms, presumably in pre-existing karst-like cavities within the limestone. The mineralization is generally considered as a "vein-type epithermal" mineralization based on its overall structure.
Open Pit:
Due to the surface or near-surface location of the ore, the ore production in the project is planned as a phased open-pit operation. It will be operated by loosening through blasting, followed by excavation using machinery and trucks. The open-pit project is designed in steps to ensure the safe preservation of slopes.
The stability of the open-pit slope was evaluated within the Scope of Slope Stability Report by the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) Mining Engineering Department. Systematic watering with tankers will be carried out on open-pit and internal mine roads to suppress the dust that may arise during blasting and excavation loading and transportation operations.
No underground water discharge is expected in the open pit. In this regard, a Hydrogeological Study Report was prepared by the Dumlupınar University, Department of Geological Engineering.
Processing Plant:
Based on the studies conducted on ore geology and metallurgy, Heap Leaching has been selected as the processing method for the project. After taking all necessary infrastructure and environmental precautions, production will be carried out safely.