Iron oxide copper gold ore deposits to be within Neoproterozoic to Mesoproterozoic basement. Worldwide, ages of recognised IOCG deposits range from 1.8 Ga to 15 Ma, however, the majority are within the 1.6 Ga to 850 Ma range. Ore minerals in IOCG deposits are typically copper-iron sulfide chalcopyrite and gangue pyrite, forming 10–15% of the rock mass. Supergene profiles can be developed above weathered examples of IOCG deposits, as exemplified by the Sossego deposit, Para State, Brazil, where typical oxidised copper minerals are present, e.g.; malachite, cuprite, native copper and minor amounts of digenite and chalcocite. Alteration is a mixture of sodic-calcic (albite-epidote) to potassic (K-feldspar)
Iron ore infrastructure such as rail in order to transport the ore from the mine to a freight ship. For these reasons, iron ore production is concentrated in the hands of a few major players. World production averages two billion metric tons of raw ore annually. The world's largest producer of iron ore is the Brazilian mining corporation Vale, followed by Anglo-Australian companies Rio Tinto Group and then BHP Billiton. A further Australian supplier, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd, has helped bring Australia's production to first in the world. The seaborne trade in iron ore, that is, iron ore to be shipped to