The Flatreef occurs at a depth of 700 m under the farm Turfspruit 241 KR in the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex. The Flatreef forms part of the Platreef of the Northern Limb, which contains magmatic rocks of the Rustenburg Layered Suite of the Bushveld Complex. The structure of the Flatreef is a flat-lying to gently westerly dipping monoclinal to open fold, 1 km wide and 6 km long. Distinctive features within the Flatreef include the development of cyclical magmatic layering with locally thickened pyroxenitic layers, and associated economically significant poly-metallic mineralisation. Geophysical evidence, exploration drill core, and recent underground exposure show that deformation had a major influence on the Flatreef mineralization. Block faulting and first generation folding affected the orientation and shape of the sedimentary host-rock sequence prior to intrusion of the Rustenburg Layered Suite. These structural and host-rock elements controlled the intrusion of the Lower Zone, and to a lesser degree, the Critical Zone correlatives of the Bushveld Complex in the Northern Limb. During intrusion reverse faults and shear zones and a second generation of folds were active, as well as local extension along layering. Syn-magmatic deformation on these structures led to laterally extensive stratal thickening across them, including the Merensky-Reef correlative that forms part of the Flatreef. This deformation was likely to have been driven by subsidence of the Bushveld complex. Many of these structures were intruded by granitic magmas during the late stages of intrusion, and they were reactivated during extension after intrusion. Thus, structures were active before, during and after the intrusion of Northern Limb, and the structural evolution determined the current geometry and mineral endowment of the Flatreef.

Flatreef 位于 Bushveld 综合体北缘 Turfspruit 241 KR 农场下方 700 m 深处。 Flatreef 是北肢 Platreef 的一部分，其中包含布什维尔德杂岩的勒斯滕堡层状岩浆岩。弗拉特雷夫的结构是一个平躺到微西倾斜的单斜到张开的褶皱，宽1公里，长6公里。 Flatreef 内的显着特征包括周期性岩浆层的发育以及局部增厚的辉石岩层，以及相关的具有经济意义的多金属矿化。地球物理证据、勘探钻芯和最近的地下暴露表明变形对 Flatreef 矿化有重大影响。在勒斯滕堡层状岩层侵入之前，块体断层和第一代褶皱影响了沉积母岩序列的方向和形状。这些结构和主岩元素控制了下带的侵入，并在较小程度上控制了北缘布什维尔德杂岩的关键带相关物。在侵入过程中，逆断层和剪切带以及第二代褶皱很活跃，并且沿层理局部延伸。这些结构上的同岩浆变形导致了它们横向广泛的地层增厚，包括构成弗拉特雷夫一部分的梅伦斯基礁相关物。这种变形可能是由布什维尔德复合体的沉降引起的。其中许多结构在侵入后期被花岗质岩浆侵入，并在侵入后的伸展过程中被重新激活。 因此，在北肢侵入之前、期间和之后，构造都处于活跃状态，构造演化决定了弗拉特雷夫目前的几何形状和矿产资源。