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The Southern Alps of New Zealand are part of an active collisional orogen where metamorphism, hydrothermal fluid flow and the formation of orogenic gold deposits are ongoing. The Southern Alps are forming due to transpressional collision between continental crust fragments on the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates. The plate tectonic rates and geometries, the sources of fluid and broad-scale fluid pathways in the hydrogeological system, and the geochemical compositions of the Torlesse Terrane rock that is being advected through the orogen are well defined so that a mass balance of metal mobility during active orogenic processing in the Southern Alps of New Zealand can be calculated. Advection of a 10 km wide × 5 km deep section of Torlesse rock through the orogen at tectonic rates (0.01 m/yr) that is then metamorphosed up to amphibolite facies causes mobilisation of over 11,27 t Au, 10.1 Mt As, 47 …