GABBRO

Gabbro refers to a large group of dark, often phaneritic (coarse-grained), mafic intrusive igneous rocks chemically equivalent to basalt, being its coarse-grained analogue. It forms when molten magma is trapped beneath the Earth’s surface and slowly cools into a holocrystalline mass. Much of the Earth’s oceanic crust is made of gabbro, formed at mid-ocean ridges. Gabbro is also found as plutons associated with continental volcanism. Due to its variant nature, the term “gabbro” may be applied loosely to a wide range of intrusive rocks, many of which are merely “gabbroic”.

Gabbro aggregates are basic inputs in road construction works, buildings, landscaping, construction of bridges and a host of other civil engineering works. Activities in these areas by governments, corporate entities and individuals are presently at their peak in Qatar and Oman. The situation is given a boost by the infrastructural development policies/programs of the three tiers of government.

The gabbro found in the quarry is light to medium in color, showing equigranularity texture. These physical properties were found uniform throughout the concession area. These rocks are highly fractured, and this makes this deposit easily mine-able. The site observations indicate that the alteration is very poor and the thicknesses of the scree deposit in the mountain slopes are very thin. The professional judgment made from the observations of the concession area and the exposed gabbro units seen near the abandoned borrow pits indicate that the mining recovery of the deposit will be around 85%. This recovery percentage was taken for estimating the gabbro reserve within the concession area.

Gabbro Blends

The Gabbro aggregates are sold in a variety of different blends:

Blend 1: 0-5mm

Blend 2: 6-10mm

Blend 3: 11-20mm

Blend 4: 21-28mm