Lucara Diamond Corp. said operational performance at its key mining operation in Botswana beat forecast in the first half of the year. The Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) listed diamond mining company stated that both ore and waste tonnage mined at Karowe Mine was ahead of what was anticipated for both for second quarter and year-to-date with ore mining remaining concentrated in the South lobe. “The process plant has performed well during the second quarter and year to date with tonnes processed ahead of forecast and carats recovered in line with expectation,” said the company as it announced performance update for…
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De Beers (51%) and Mountain Province Diamonds (49%) have announced that the Gahcho Kué process plant has been commissioned, and that ore from the mine is now being fed to the process plant to signal the formal ramp-up of diamond production. The project remains on track to reach full commercial operation in the first quarter of 2017. First ore was exposed at Gahcho Kué on 23 March 2016. The commissioning phase introduced ore into the Processing Facility from the Gahcho Kué pit on 20 June 2016 with the first commissioning carats being recovered on 30 June 2016. The mining…
Standard Bank (also trading as Stanbic Bank), will repeat its hosting of an inter-Africa trade and business dialogue aimed at connecting commercial banking clients with similar business interests across the continent. The conference will focus on West Africa as a region of opportunity, and will be held in Accra, Ghana on 3 – 5 October. The conference follows the successful inaugural session held in Kenya in April this year where Standard Bank hosted clients from Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Malawi, South Africa and Kenya – giving participants an overview of the East Africa region while assisting them to identify accessible services…
De Beers’ rough diamond sales tumbled at the latest auction but the leading global producer remained optimistic as it managed to move stones at the most difficult period of the year. According to the company owned by Anglo American, sales were lower at its Global Sightholder Sales and Auction Sales for the sixth sales cycle of 2016. The provisional figures showed it sold $520 million worth of stones during the sight as opposed to the actual $564 million it made at the Cycle 5 2016. The company with most of its meat in Botswana however praised the figures although it…
Firestone Diamonds plc, the AIM-quoted diamond development company has agreed to extend the date by when all conditions for sale of its Botswana assets to Tango Mining Limited must be satisfied. The company has entered into a conditional sale agreement with Tango Mining for the Disposal, for a total consideration of US$8.0 million and, asannounced on 13 October 2015 and 6 April 2016, certain terms of the CSA were amended by the amendment letters. “Pursuant to a further amendment of the CSA, all conditions of the CSA must now be satisfied by no later than 29 August 2016 (the “Revised Drop Dead Date”),”…
Anglo American, the parent company to De Beers says the macro-economic conditions underpinning consumer demand for diamonds remain broadly stable in aggregate, but with persistent downside risks looking into H2 2016-including recent social and political instability. The global diversified giants said caution is also expected when buying in the midstream by polishers. When announcing its interim financial results for the first half of 2016, it added that production guidance will remain unchanged. “Rough diamond revenues are expected to be weighted towards H1 2016, consistent with prior years and typical of the seasonal drivers,” said the company headed by Mark Cutifani.…
The Index of Mining Production declined in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2015, new data by Statistics Botswana has shown. The Stats Brief on Indices of Physical Volume of Mining Production by the statistics body showed that Index of Mining Production stood at 90.2 in the first quarter of 2016, which was a negative year-on-year decline of 5.6% from 95.6 during the 2015 first quarter. However, the index shows an increase of 15.8% from 77.9 during 2015 fourth quarter to 90.2 during 2016 first quarter. The quarterly increase was following another increase of…
The Botswana Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association (BEAPA), an organisation that represents environmental practitioners will launch next week. The not-for-profit professional body was set up for practitioners registered under the Societies Act. The association operates mainly through the BEAPA Board, a body corporate, established by the Environmental Assessment Act of 2011. “The purpose of the Board is to regulate practitioners of environment assessment through registering and certification of practitioners for both environmental protection and public good.” In its regulation of environmental practitioners BEAPA does; registration and certifies qualified persons as environmental assessment practitioners in accordance with the Environmental Assessment Act and…
First Quantum Minerals Ltd. has committed to spend AUD $3 million on work programmes to advance the Sese integrated power project, further to their agreement of January 2015. First Quantum has a Joint Venture Agreement with African Energy to develop power generation capacity at Sese—a Botswana based energy project. “Additionally, a 12‐month extension, to 12th July 2017, has been agreed for the investment of the remaining AUD $7 million required to complete FQM’s earn‐in for 75% interest in the Sese joint venture,” African Energy relayed the message. The AUD $3 million commitment will be used to undertake a number of…
Pangolin Diamonds Corp, the TSX-listed diamond exploration company said a percussion drill programme has commenced at its wholly-owned Motloutse Diamond Project and could be completed within the next two weeks. The company said the results from the drill programme will be announced once all material submitted to laboratories in Canada have been analysed. “The kimberlite targets are inclusive of AGA-01, an aeromagnetic and gravity anomaly associated with positive sub-angular kimberlite indicator minerals recovered at surface and MG-08 with an anomalous concentration of positive kimberlite indicator minerals recovered at surface, as both previously announced respectively (see releases May 31, 2016 and…