Seismic in the Drilling Workflow – Phase 2: MinEx CRC Project 5

The Challenge

Modern mineral exploration beneath sediments and weathered regolith is dominated by the use of invasive drilling to access and sample below the surface. By improving technologies for the non-invasive imaging of buried geology, we could reduce the amount of drilling needed to discover and characterise hidden mineral systems.

Proposed Solution

Supported as part of MRIWA’s 10-year commitment to the Mineral Exploration (MinEx) CRC, this project will continue the development of more efficient and cost-effective methods for using seismic sensors to enhance understanding of rocks and structural features concealed beneath the surface. By increasing the amount of data gathered from each drillhole and helping to visualise the surrounding geology in 3-dimensions, this technology will reduce the number of drillholes required to test potentially mineralised targets beneath the surface, making it cheaper and easier to discover and develop ore bodies hidden deep below the surface.

Proposed Benefits to WA

Many of the most exciting exploration targets in Western Australia lie in areas where the richly-endowed geology of the State’s proven mineral provinces plunges beneath more recent layers of rock. Lowering the barriers to understanding these buried targets will reduce the risk for companies investing in exploration to underpin the productive future of the minerals industry in WA.

Keywords: Mineral exploration; exploration technology; drilling; geophysics; seismic