Category: diamond mining

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Zimbabwe stockpiles 300,000 carats of diamonds

Zimbabwe stockpiles 300,000 carats of diamonds

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has stockpiled 300,000 carats of diamonds under new regulations which compel miners to pay half of their royalties using commodities, the state-run Sunday Mail reported.

Central bank governor John Mangudya also told the Harare-based newspaper that gold reserves stood at around 350 kilograms, or around $20 million in US dollars. The value of the diamond stockpile is hard to quantify, he added.

Zimbabwe introduced regulations last year that require miners to pay half of their royalties to the government in the commodities themselves and the rest in cash, as the southern African country seeks to build its mineral reserves.

Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond, and Murowa Diamond, which is owned by Rio Zim, are the only diamond firms operating in the country.

Mining companies that operate in Zimbabwe include units of Impala Platinum, Anglo American Platinum and Sibanye Gold.

Platinum and lithium producers are allowed to pay their royalties in cash.

Source: mining.com

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Karowe Mine Yields Massive Rough Diamond Weighing 1.080 carats.

Karowe Mine Rough Diamond 1.080 carats

Lucara Diamond Corp. has recovered a 1,080.1-carat rough diamond from its Karowe mine in Botswana, its fourth topping the 1,000-carat mark in eight years.

The white, type-IIA stone came from the site’s south lobe, known for its large, high-quality rough, Lucara said Wednesday.

The diamond showed up in the miner’s Coarse XRT unit, a recovery circuit that uses X-ray technology to identify huge stones in large pieces of ore before they’re broken up.

Since 2015, the south lobe of Karowe’s AK6 kimberlite has yielded three other diamonds in this size class: the 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona that year, the 1,758-carat Sewelô in 2019, and a 1,174.76-carat clivage diamond in 2021.

“Lucara is extremely pleased to be reporting the recovery of another large, high-quality gem diamond in excess of 1,000 carats,” said Lucara CEO Eira Thomas on Wednesday. “As we progress mining deeper in the open pit and transition to underground mining exclusively in the south lobe, the preponderance of large, high-value stones is increasing.”

The miner is investing $683 million in Karowe’s underground expansion — a move it says will extend the mine’s life until at least 2040, 15 years beyond the original 2025 closure date.

Surce: Diamonds.net

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131 Carat Diamond Discovered by Lucapa in Lulo

Lucapa Diamond
Lucapa Diamond Discovery

Lucapa Diamond and its partners announced the recovery of another beaming diamond. This 131-carat white Tpe lla diamond was located in the Lulo mine in Angola. This makes the diamond the fourth +100 carat unearthed by Lulo this year alone.

Stephen, the Managing Director of Lucapa, stated: “We are very pleased with the recovery of another spectacular +100 carat Type IIa diamond at Lulo. [It] continues to illustrate the success of our long partnership with Endiama and Rosas & Petalas. The unique nature of the Lulo resource and the ongoing potential for primary source exploration is highlighted by this result.”

The Australian miner Lucapa has a 40% stake in the Lulo mine, which holds the world’s highest dollar-per-carat alluvial diamonds. As such, the discovery of this stone is the 29th +100 carat diamond discovery since commercial production started at Lulo in 2015. Interestingly, Angola is proving to have enormous diamond discovery potential with stones such as this being found regularly.

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