The VMS type deposits of the Altai-Sayany metallogenic province (including the Rudnyi Altai, Salair, and Ulugoi zones), the Iberian Pyrite Belt in Spain and Portugal, and the Bathurst Mining Camp in Canada: The comparative characteristics

The paper presents a comparative analysis of VMS-type massive sulfide polymetallic deposits of the Altai-Sayany metallogenic province (including the Rudny Altai, Salair, and Ulugoi zones) with the world’s reference provinces, the Iberian Pyrite Belt in Spain and Portugal and the Bathurst Mining Camp in Canada. The geological structure, lithofacies characteristics, mineral types, structural and compositional localization conditions, and sulfur isotope composition of the mineralization are considered. Established universal features of the VMS ore formation comprise the confinement to bimodal volcanosedimentary complexes of the riftogenic type; predominance of pyrite, sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite; and zonal transition from copper-pyrite to zinc-lead ores. Regional differences identified, mainly in the sulfur isotope composition, reflect different paleoenvironments of the ore formation (hydrothermal sulfate reduction, bacterial sulfate reduction in open or isolated basins). The results are applicable to the metallogenic forecasting and exploration of new VMS-type objects.