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LITHOEN

Deposit

Ravensthorpe

A mineral deposit recorded by the USGS Ni-Co laterite database, at Western Australia, Australia. The compilation classifies it as the Fe oxide subtype. Its recorded status is "open-cast mining operations".

Classification

recognition basis
authoritativeDatabase
realm
australia

What this record is, and who says so

Recognised on the basis of

Authoritative database

A curated deposit database published by a scientific institution, in which inclusion is itself a documented editorial decision with stated criteria.

A deposit is an occurrence of sufficient size and grade that it might, under the most favourable circumstances, be considered to have economic potential. Lithoen records that a named authority made that judgement. It is not a statement that anything here is recoverable, and it is not a resource or a reserve.

How it is interpreted

A deposit is not a mineral system. A source interprets it as an example of one, and interpretations change while the rock does not.

  • Interpreted as an example of Nickel-cobalt laterite system

    By — Membership of the USGS Ni-Co laterite database, which is a compilation of one deposit class. The interpretation is the compilation’s, not Lithoen’s.

    Inclusion in a compilation of this deposit class is the compilation’s classification of this deposit. It is not a determination made at the deposit, and no mechanism at this deposit follows from it.

Commodities documented here

  • Cobalt (commodity)documented association

    The compilation reports a grade for this metal at this deposit. Lithoen records the documented association and asserts nothing about recoverability.

  • Nickel (commodity)documented association

    The compilation reports a grade for this metal at this deposit. Lithoen records the documented association and asserts nothing about recoverability.

Reported figures, and what each one is

A sample assay, a deposit average, a compiler total and a reported reserve are different quantities. Each figure below carries which one it is; none of them is a current resource or reserve.

0.029 wt%m Cobalt

Reserve grade

A grade reported inside a formal ore-reserve estimate, which additionally embeds modifying factors — mining, processing, economic, legal.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.029 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to reserve tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

0.027 wt%m Cobalt

Resource grade

A grade reported inside a formal mineral-resource estimate. Meaningful only with its reporting framework, category and effective date.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.027 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to resource tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

0.027 wt%m Cobalt

Deposit average

An average grade attributed to a whole deposit by a compiler, over a tonnage defined by that compiler at a stated cut-off. Not a measurement of anything: a summary of an estimate.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.027 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to total tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

0.66 wt%m Nickel

Reserve grade

A grade reported inside a formal ore-reserve estimate, which additionally embeds modifying factors — mining, processing, economic, legal.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.66 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to reserve tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

0.61 wt%m Nickel

Resource grade

A grade reported inside a formal mineral-resource estimate. Meaningful only with its reporting framework, category and effective date.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.61 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to resource tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

0.61 wt%m Nickel

Deposit average

An average grade attributed to a whole deposit by a compiler, over a tonnage defined by that compiler at a stated cut-off. Not a measurement of anything: a summary of an estimate.

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.61 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to total tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

The source records behind this

What one row of a published dataset was taken to mean, and why. The original record stays traceable after reconciliation.

  • Ni-Co laterite deposits of the world (USGS OFR 2011-1058), record 10

    Named there
    Ravensthorpe
    The source calls it
    deposit
    Lithoen reads it as
    deposit (stated)

    The usgs ni-co laterite database states what one of its rows is, and this row is read as the deposit the compilers named. The compilation states that it excludes occurrences and prospects that are less well known, so the row is a deposit by its own definition.

    Merged into this row by the compilers: Halleys, Hale-Bopp, Shoemaker-Levy. Those names were combined under the dataset’s own two-kilometre rule before Lithoen read it.

    Read and refused

    • grade columns with a value of zero — In both USGS deposit databases a grade of zero means the value was unavailable, not that the grade is zero. Reading it as a measurement would publish a false number.
    • decimal-degree columns beyond the authored precision — The decimal-degree columns carry floating-point residue from the degrees-minutes-seconds columns that were actually authored. The point is emitted at the authored precision instead.

How this is mapped

One published representation of where Ravensthorpe is. Each is one interpretation, by one identified source, at one scale — not the shape of the thing itself.

  • Representative point

    Point · 1 positionspreferred for publication

    A single position standing for something that is not a point. It exists so a feature can be shown on a map or listed by location, and it asserts NOTHING about extent. A representative point for a 2,000 km province is a label anchor, not a location.

    A representative point for Ravensthorpe from the USGS nickel-cobalt laterite database. It is a label anchor and not an extent: the compilation records an ore-body area, length and width for many of its rows, but places no outline on the ground. This row was authored in degrees, minutes and seconds, so the position is stated to about 30 m.

    Boundary certainty
    ApproximateThe position is known only within a distance much larger than the line width on any map that shows it. Drawing it thinner does not make it better known.
    Status of this geometry
    inferredThe status of the geometry, which need not match the status of what the entity’s claims assert.
    Dataset
    Ni-Co laterite deposits of the world (USGS OFR 2011-1058)Berger, V.I., Singer, D.A., Bliss, J.D., and Moring, B.C., 2011, Ni-Co laterite deposits of the world: Database and grade and tonnage models: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2011-1058, doi:10.3133/ofr20111058.

    What was done to this geometry

    • By Lithoen — Rounded to 4 decimal places, the precision the compiler authored: this row was recorded in degrees, minutes and seconds, so the position is stated to about 30 m. The dataset's decimal-degree columns carry more digits, which are conversion residue rather than knowledge.
    • Before it reached Lithoen — The compilation authored positions in degrees, minutes and seconds and stores a decimal conversion; the further decimal places are conversion residue rather than knowledge.

How this record is known

13
Settled consensus
Cited as the accepted position of the discipline.

13 of 13 claims on this page cite at least one registered source. Counts describe how each statement is known, not how likely it is to be true.

What Lithoen records

Each claim states how it is known and cites its evidence.

Establisheddeparea=24; deplength=10; depwidth=3

Reported for this deposit

The compilation records ore-body dimensions for Ravensthorpe: deparea=24; deplength=10; depwidth=3. These describe the dimensions of a body and place no outline on the ground.

  • precision note: Dimensions of an ore body are not a boundary. No polygon follows from an area in square kilometres, and the deposit still has only a point.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Establishedthe Fe oxide subtype

How a source classifies it

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database classifies Ravensthorpe as the Fe oxide subtype.

  • definition basis: Deposit-type field of the USGS Ni-Co laterite database, whose metadata enumerates 1 = clay silicate, 2 = Mg hydrous silicate, 3 = Fe oxide.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_CLASSIFICATION

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Established0.029 wt%m Cobalt

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.029 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to reserve tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: reserveGrade
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the cobalt grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to reserve tonnage".
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Established0.027 wt%m Cobalt

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.027 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to resource tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: resourceGrade
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the cobalt grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to resource tonnage". A cut-off of 0.3 percent is recorded separately by the compilation and is a threshold applied to material, not the grade of any material.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Established0.027 wt%m Cobalt

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a cobalt grade of 0.027 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to total tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: depositAverage
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the cobalt grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to total tonnage".
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Establishedclay minerals; goethite; limonite; serpentine; quartz

Reported for this deposit

The compilation reports 5 distinct minerals present at Ravensthorpe: clay minerals, goethite, limonite, serpentine, quartz. It records presence only: no abundance and no paragenesis follows.

  • precision note: Presence is not abundance, and the order carries no paragenetic meaning.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Establishedthe name is used by the survey for a sulphide deposit; the district's lateritic entry is named Bandalup

How a source classifies it

A property of a dataset or model, shown here for context — not an observation about this record.

In the Geological Survey of Western Australia's own 1990 figure of principal Western Australian nickel deposits by type, the name Ravensthorpe is assigned to an intrusive-dunite-associated nickel sulphide deposit, while a separate entry named Bandalup is classified as a lateritic nickel deposit. The survey therefore uses these two names for objects of different deposit types in the same district, and this corpus records that a nickel object called Ravensthorpe is not, on the name alone, the lateritic object of that district.

  • assertion basis: SOURCE_CLASSIFICATION
  • definition basis: Read from the two entries of one figure key: entry 24 under 'Intrusive dunite - associated deposits' and entry 41 under 'Lateritic nickel deposits'.
  • generality: DATASET_PROPERTY
  • assumption: This claim is about how a source uses two names. It does not assert that the corpus entity is or is not the same object as either entry, and it may not be used to merge or to split any entity. Identity for the Bandalup object remains unresolved under the frozen coordinate rule.
  • temporal basis: Published 1990.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence one source

Evidence: Australia 1990 Primary authority

Established0.66 wt%m Nickel

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.66 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to reserve tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: reserveGrade
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the nickel grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to reserve tonnage".
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Established0.61 wt%m Nickel

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.61 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to resource tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: resourceGrade
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the nickel grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to resource tonnage". A cut-off of 0.3 percent is recorded separately by the compilation and is a threshold applied to material, not the grade of any material.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Established0.61 wt%m Nickel

Reported for this deposit

The USGS Ni-Co laterite database reports a nickel grade of 0.61 weight percent for Ravensthorpe, stated with respect to total tonnage. The compilation carries a separate grade field for each tonnage basis and they are not interchangeable: a resource is not a reserve, and neither is production.

  • scope: depositAverage
  • definition basis: The metadata defines this field as the nickel grade "as percent of metal in ore, with respect to total tonnage".
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED
  • reporting framework: None stated. The compilation names no reporting code — no JORC classification and no competent-person sign-off — and Lithoen supplies none.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

EstablishedRecorded as a deposit by the USGS Ni-Co laterite database, record 10.

How a source classifies it

Ravensthorpe is recorded as a deposit because the USGS Ni-Co laterite database includes it, as record 10. The compilation states that it excludes occurrences and prospects that are less well known, so every row is a deposit by the compilers’ own definition.

  • source record: usgs-ni-co-laterite-deposits-of-the-world record 10
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_CLASSIFICATION

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

EstablishedCretaceous to early-mid Tertiary

Reported for this deposit

The compilation assigns the laterite-forming weathering at Ravensthorpe to the Cretaceous to early-mid Tertiary age group.

  • temporal basis: Age group of the laterite-forming weathering processes, as the compilation assigns it.
  • precision note: A group, not a date. The compilation offers three periods and assigns each row to one; no determination on this deposit is implied.
  • assertion basis: SOURCE_REPORTED

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, single source

Evidence: V.I. 2011 Primary authority

Establisheda district name covering a numbered sulphide deposit group; the laterite object carries a different name

How a source classifies it

A property of a dataset or model, shown here for context — not an observation about this record.

In the Geological Survey of Western Australia's 1984 bulletin, the heading 'Ravensthorpe deposits' groups eight numbered nickel SULPHIDE objects — Number 1, Number 4 and Number 8 deposits, and Numbers 3, 5, 4W and 11, B1 and Maggie Hays prospects — while the district's lateritic object is described separately as the Bandalup Creek deposits. The Geological Survey's 1998 report for the same sheets uses Bandalup for a mapped rock unit, the Bandalup Ultramafics, and for a hill and a pool. Within this district the two names carry a group of sulphide objects and a stratigraphic unit respectively, so neither name identifies a lateritic deposit on its own.

  • assertion basis: SOURCE_CLASSIFICATION
  • generality: DATASET_PROPERTY
  • definition basis: Read from the bulletin's own contents list for Chapter 4 and from the 1998 report's stratigraphic and metamorphic chapters.
  • assumption: A statement about how two sources use two names. It does not assert that the corpus entity is or is not the same object as any of them, and it may not be used to merge, split or rename any entity. Identity for the Bandalup object remains unresolved under the frozen coordinate rule.
  • temporal basis: Published 1984 and 1998.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 2 sources, multiple sources, independence unknown

Evidence: R.J. 1984 Primary authority; Witt 1998 Primary authority

In the knowledge graph

Record last updated 2026-09-08. Corrections follow the published corrections policy; superseded claims are retained, never silently edited.