Botswana’s government is reassessing a proposed deal with HB Antwerp after Lucara Diamond terminated its sales agreement with the Belgian gem trader, citing financial irregularities, President Mokgweetsi Masisi said last week. Lucara Diamond said on Thursday it had ended its agreement with HB Trading BV, a unit of HB Antwerp, following what it called “a material breach of financial commitments by HB”. HB did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In March Botswana, the world’s
Canadian diamond miner Lucara Diamond has terminated the sales agreement with HB Trading, following a “material breach of financial commitments” by HB. Lucara says it will continue to use its established mechanisms to sell Karowe’s rough diamond production, namely through its Clara diamond sales platform, traditional tenders and other value-added mechanisms for stones. “The Lucara production profile is unique in the diamond industry and the company will continue to look at innovative sales mechanisms to maximise the
ENDIAMA has held a meeting, last month in Dundo- Lunda Norte province, to take stock of the half-yearly diamond production of the mining companies operating in Angola. In addition to maximizing the exchange of experiences, the aim of the meeting was to evaluate the functioning and discuss the procedures applied by the diamond producing companies. The event was led by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ENDIAMA- E.P, Ganga Júnior, and was also
A fancy-vivid-blue diamond with a high estimate of $50 million will be the star of an upcoming Geneva jewelry auction at Christie’s. The pear-shaped, 17.61-carat Bleu Royal diamond is the largest internally flawless gem of its color ever to appear at auction, Christie’s said Monday. It will headline the November 7 Magnificent Jewels sale. The stone has spent the past 50 years in a private collection. Now set in a ring, it is entering the
Petra Diamonds gave a downbeat outlook after weak rough demand drove the company into the red in the most recent financial year. Revenue slid 42% to $325.3 million for the 12 months that ended June 30, the miner reported Friday. Sales volume dropped 33% to 2.3 million carats, with the average price falling 14% to $139 per carat. The slump reflected decrease in production, the deferral of sales to the 2024 fiscal year due to
Inventory in the diamond trade will remain high for the time being amid reduced retail demand, but the market will eventually rebound, De Beers has predicted. “While there have been some positive signals in some countries, with US inflation continuing to fall and the economy proving more resilient than anticipated, 2023 consumer demand for natural diamonds is expected to be below the record levels seen in 2021 and 2022,” the miner said in its annual Diamond Insight
The Indian diamond sector has recommended a two-month freeze on rough imports, its most drastic emergency measure since the Covid-19 crisis. The pause will run from October 15 to December 15, five leading trade organizations said in a joint statement. They came to the decision at a meeting of more than 100 industry representatives the same day, and said they would review the situation in the first week of December. The move is a response
The Australian multinational Rio Tinto, the second largest minerals company in the world, began prospecting operations for kimberlites and diamonds in the commune of Chiri, province of Lunda-Norte, informed the company’s general director. The four-year prospecting phase takes place in a 75 hectare or 108 square kilometer mine, under the terms of a mining investment contract in Quimberlito do Chiri signed between the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Endiama and Rio Tinto ,
Alrosa has recovered a 390.7-carat diamond from its Mayat mine in Yakutia, the largest gem-quality rough discovered in Russia in 10 years. The stone is irregularly shaped, bears a light color, and is bordered by a yellow-brown halo, the company said Sunday. The miner found the diamond during the night-washing of rough from the Ebelyakh portion of the deposit, along with a colorless diamond with a traditional octahedron shape weighing 37.7 carats. In 2013, Alrosa
Last week, NUM said it was planning a strike at Venetia, as De Beers could only offer a 6% pay increase against demands for a 9% hike. Anglo American’s De Beers is confident ongoing talks with South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) will avert a wage strike at Venetia, the country’s largest diamond mine, the company said on Friday. On Tuesday, NUM, South Africa’s biggest mineworkers’ union, said it was planning a strike at
