Mining Quartz

Zimbabwe is well endowed, with various minerals located across the country.

But there is a definite bias if you consider which minerals are being mined the most.

You don’t need to look far to realize that most people are mining gold and Chrome.

But what other minerals can small-scale miners exploit?

Are these the only opportunities available for Zimbabwean small-scale miners, or are we just restricting ourselves?

Mining Quartz

I recently had an encounter with a miner who had a quartz sample.

I had little experience with this mineral, so I did some “digging.”

A quick Google search revealed that quartz belongs to the carnelian agate semi-precious stone category.

Don’t worry, this is as far as the jargon goes.

It is mined in various regions across the country, with significant deposits found in Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland East.

Varieties of Quartz

There are many varieties of quartz, and these can be distinguished by their colours.

The colours are bestowed on these crystals because of the conditions in which they are formed.

• Rock Crystal               White
• Citrine                         Yellow
• Amethyst                     Purple
• Rose quartz                Pink
• Ametrine                     Purple and Yellow

These are just a few examples of this mineral, but there are literally dozens you can find.

Further reading on the different varieties and properties of quartz can be found here;

https://mysticcrystalimports.com/pages/the-quartz-crystal-guide

https://www.gemsociety.org/article/quartz-jewelry-and-gemstone-information/

Why mine quartz

Well, there are plenty of reasons why you should consider mining quartz.

• You see what you are mining.

Quartz mining is entirely different from gold, and therein lies the advantage.

You can see what you are producing, the quantity and the quality.

You need not worry about going to the mill and finding out your entire load only gave you 3 grams instead of 30

• The mining process is straightforward

You do not need any fancy or expensive equipment when mining quartz.

Many fortunes have been dug out of the ground using a simple pick and chisel.

This makes it a fantastic mineral to mine for small-scale producers.

What you need to keep in mind when mining quartz

Contrary to popular opinion, size does matter; well, at least when it comes to mining quartz anyway.

You need to aim for the bigger crystals because they fetch more on the market.

This means you need to be careful when mining this mineral, try by all means to minimize cracks and breakages.

The market for quartz is there in Zimbabwe if you have the right stones.

Clarity also plays an important role when you are marketing quartz crystals.

You need to familiarise yourself with all these parameters if you are going to be successful in this venture.

Though figures may vary, our research for clear quartz revealed prices ranging from anywhere between $4,000 to $10,000 a tonne.

In the past, they’ve been many stories of miners who benefited from finding quartz deposits.

A case in point is the boom in Mukumbura in Mashonaland Central in 2014.

You can read more about that story in this piece (Mad about quartz in Mukumbura).