Good read from 2006 about the discovery of Olympic Dam in 1975. More history in the making happening right now at Ema and TE.
The initiallow-grade copper discovery in drillhole RD (Roxby Downs) 1 in July 1975. The mine opened in 1988. 13 years of exploration and development, mainly because it's an UG deposit. Our Olympic Dam will take about 3 years from discovery to the commencement of mining.
"The finding of a higher gradesection of the orebody took more than a year torealize, following a sequence ofeight drill holes, seven of which defined low gradecopper mineralization."
"The history spans five years of activemetalliferous mineralsexploration, and its recollectionstill generates excitement. It is a history with manyimplicit lessons, the chief of which is theimportance of mentoring, multidisciplinaryteamwork, enthusiasm, scientificcuriosity, and persistence."
