If knowledge is embedded in the land, every territory brings discoveries that force us to rethink our ideas, concepts, and practices. The high level of activity over the last decade in the little-explored terrains of Eeyou Istchee James Bay has given rise to several new ideas that challenge established paradigms in Abitibi: genetic models, prospective environments, and exploration methods and strategies. This series of talks gives an overview of the innovative discoveries made by the industry and by academia in metallogeny and gold exploration, across Québec’s different contexts.
Back to program
![]()
![]()
Mines
Old Paradigms, Fresh Ideas: Innovative Perspectives on Gold Research and Exploration in Québec
Thursday, November 19, 2026
9 a.m.
Welcome Address
10:20 a.m.
West Menarik Project: Innovative Perspectives on an Archean Gold System, Eeyou Istchee James Bay
Conference details
The West Menarik property is located in the La Grande Archean subprovince, in Eeyou Istchee James Bay. The volcano-sedimentary sequences are cut by intermediate to felsic intrusions and overlain by an alluvial-fluvial sedimentary basin. An integrated mineral system approach was used to reassess the gold potential of the area along three complementary axes:
- Structural architecture: A reinterpretation of the structural framework, combining field data, geophysics and high-resolution imagery, highlights a hierarchical fault network within a transpressive relay. A quantitative validation confirms the predictive capability of this architectural interpretation on the distribution of gold mineralization and identifies favourable preferential alignment.
- Magmatic and geochemical signatures: The multivariate classification of intrusions using immobile elements distinguishes several intrusive facies with contrasting geochemical signatures. A specific facies, enriched in chalcophile and volatile elements, stands out due to an anomalous gold background and a diffuse metal footprint in the host rock.
- Metallogenic fields: Mapping of hydrothermal footprints reveals the coexistence of two distinct fields on the property: a magmatic-hydrothermal-dominated field spatially associated with fertile intrusions and gold veins of orogenic type. This duality, characteristic of prolific Archean belts, opens new exploration perspectives for the project.