The diamond mining and marketing company De Beers is set to collaborate with Angola on opportunities to increase diamond production, support the alluvial mining sector, and enhance social development for the benefit of Angola’s citizens.
On Tuesday 6th February, De Beers signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Angola’s National Mineral Resource Agency, Angola’s state-owned Endiama diamond company, and Angola’s state-owned Sodiam diamond trading company, aiming to support the outlined objectives.
De Beers CEO Al Cook emphasized Angola’s exemplary reform efforts, citing enhanced transparency, adoption of internationally recognized best practices, and a business-friendly investment environment. The MoU signing took place at the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town.
“This is a strategic partnership with the objective of increasing diamond production in Angola to contribute towards the socio-economic development of our country,” said Ganga Junior, CEO of Endiama.
The MoU extends De Beers’ partnership with Angola beyond the two mineral investment contracts of 2022, which covered license areas in north-eastern Angola, where exploration activities are currently underway.
“I look forward to continuing to work with our partners in Angola through harnessing our collective expertise and ambition to support a thriving diamond sector,” added Cook in a release to Mining Weekly.
Key areas of collaboration outlined in the MoU include reviewing several kimberlite deposits to reassess their economic attractiveness using new De Beers technologies, promoting transparency and traceability in diamond production, and identifying opportunities to build local community capacity by leveraging the Building Forever sustainability framework of the De Beers Group.
