Chinese land and resources authorities in the eastern Shandong Province on Monday announced the discovery of two new gold and iron ore deposits.

Geologists with Shandong Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources found a gold ore deposit with a proven reserve of 103 tonnes at the southern section of the Jiaojia gold belt in Laizhou City, said the announcement.

The deposits were estimated to have an economic value of more than 20 billion yuan (US$2.92 billion).

The Jiaojia belt, at the northern edge of the Shandong Peninsula, has become a focus for exploration since China first found gold ore deposits there in the 1970s.

Geologists also found another gold ore deposit with a potential of 51.83 tonnes near Sizhuang of Laizhou. More than 100 tons of gold ores have been produced from this metallogenic belt so far.

The bureau also announced a proven deposit of more than 1 billion tonnes of iron ore in Yanzhou, a small city in Jining, in southern Shandong, said the announcement.

The deposit, which is 80.46 meters to 190 meters thick with a concentration ratio of 25.97 percent to 31.72 percent, is buried about 1,020 to 2,200 meters below ground, said an official from the bureau.

Before this, the proven iron ore resources in Shandong stood at 2.6 billion tons.

The newly discovered deposit, though with its grade remains moderate, will provide Shandong with an important resource guarantee for the iron and steel making industry, said the official.

(Xinhua News Agency October 27, 2008)