Progress in porphyry copper exploration from the Gangdise belt, Tibet, China

Recent mineral exploration in the Gangdise porphyry copper deposit belt, an important component of the Himalaya-Tethyan metallogenic belt, has led to the discovery of a number of deposits, as exemplified by the world-class Miocene Qulong porphyry Cu deposit. This paper reviews major advances in the studies of ore genesis and metallogenic regularity and progresses in mineral exploration of porphyry Cu deposits in the belt. Existing problems and suggestion for future exploration also are given.