


Lateritic nickel ore deposits
Genesis and types of nickel laterites. Lateritic nickel ores formed by intensive tropical weathering of olivine-rich ultramafic rocks such as dunite, peridotite and komatiite and their serpentinized derivatives, serpentinite which consist largely of the magnesium silicate serpentine and contains approx. 0.3% nickel. This initial nickel content is strongly enriched in the course of lateritization.