BlueRock Concerned over Cash-Flow Shortage

                           

BlueRock Diamonds is in talks to receive financial help after operations at its Kareevlei mine in South Africa paused due to a possible safety breach.

“The suspension has impacted near-term cash-flow expectations, exacerbated by the fact that there is no planned diamond tender in Kimberley [in South Africa] in December,” BlueRock said last week. “The company is assessing how best to meet its working capital needs over this period.”

The miner is considering funding its December production through its existing relationship with Delgatto Diamond Finance, it explained.

While mining is on hold, meaning BlueRock cannot source any new production, it is currently processing ore stocks that built up before the rainy season began, management noted. The company still expects to meet its outlook of 22,000 to 26,000 carats for the full year, but believes output will be toward the lower end of that.

Last week, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) visited the site and issued a notice under Section 54 of the Mine Health and Safety Act, which enables inspectors to call for the suspension of mine operations if they identify possible danger.

“The company remains in discussion with the DMRE in relation to the issues raised regarding BlueRock’s mining activities that remain suspended, and hopes to resolve these in the near future,” BlueRock added.

Source: DCLA

BlueRock Concerned over Cash-Flow Shortage

                           

BlueRock Diamonds is in talks to receive financial help after operations at its Kareevlei mine in South Africa paused due to a possible safety breach.

“The suspension has impacted near-term cash-flow expectations, exacerbated by the fact that there is no planned diamond tender in Kimberley [in South Africa] in December,” BlueRock said last week. “The company is assessing how best to meet its working capital needs over this period.”

The miner is considering funding its December production through its existing relationship with Delgatto Diamond Finance, it explained.

While mining is on hold, meaning BlueRock cannot source any new production, it is currently processing ore stocks that built up before the rainy season began, management noted. The company still expects to meet its outlook of 22,000 to 26,000 carats for the full year, but believes output will be toward the lower end of that.

Last week, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) visited the site and issued a notice under Section 54 of the Mine Health and Safety Act, which enables inspectors to call for the suspension of mine operations if they identify possible danger.

“The company remains in discussion with the DMRE in relation to the issues raised regarding BlueRock’s mining activities that remain suspended, and hopes to resolve these in the near future,” BlueRock added.

Source: DCLA

Rio Tinto Buys Remaining Share of Diavik Diamond Mine

                            

Rio Tinto, the world’s second-largest miner, just became the sole owner of the Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories on Thursday. Despite saying in the past the Company was not interested in taking full control of the aging arctic mine, Rio Tinto ended up buying the 40% share held by Dominion Diamond Mines for a total stake of 100%.

Part of the transaction includes Rio Tinto releasing Dominion and its lenders from any outstanding liabilities or obligations involving funding the operation or the closure of the joint venture. On the other end, Rio Tinto will receive all remaining Diavik assets held by Dominion including a security cash collateral for the potential future closure for the mine and unsold production.

Why the Buyout Now?
Dominion, which used to be the fourth-largest diamond producer, suffered some financial troubles which played out in court over several months last year. These troubles ultimately led Dominion to sell its other Canadian mine, Ekati in December 2020. In 2017, The Washington Companies ended up buying the Company for $1.2 billion.

This deal follows a 19 month long process beginning in April 2020 by Dominion Diamond Mines filing for insolvency protection under the Canadian Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act.

Diavik has been in production since 2003 and is eventually facing closures in 2025 which will cost hundreds of millions of dollars to fully clean up. Diavik is Canada’s largest diamond mine, and yielded 6.2 million carats of rough diamonds in 2020.

Rio Tinto Minerals boss Sinead Kaufman said in a statement, “Diavik will now move forward with certainty to continue supplying customers with high quality, responsibly sourced Canadian diamonds.”

Worries and concerns began to surround the diamond market due to production coming to a

halt during the global COVID-19 pandemic, with some people worried the market would never recover. However, Alrosa, the world’s top diamond miner by output, claims the market has fully recovered from the effects of the global pandemic, and sales of jewelry and rough diamonds are up 23% this year compared to 2020.

Source: DCLA

Rio Tinto Buys Remaining Share of Diavik Diamond Mine

                            

Rio Tinto, the world’s second-largest miner, just became the sole owner of the Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories on Thursday. Despite saying in the past the Company was not interested in taking full control of the aging arctic mine, Rio Tinto ended up buying the 40% share held by Dominion Diamond Mines for a total stake of 100%.

Part of the transaction includes Rio Tinto releasing Dominion and its lenders from any outstanding liabilities or obligations involving funding the operation or the closure of the joint venture. On the other end, Rio Tinto will receive all remaining Diavik assets held by Dominion including a security cash collateral for the potential future closure for the mine and unsold production.

Why the Buyout Now?
Dominion, which used to be the fourth-largest diamond producer, suffered some financial troubles which played out in court over several months last year. These troubles ultimately led Dominion to sell its other Canadian mine, Ekati in December 2020. In 2017, The Washington Companies ended up buying the Company for $1.2 billion.

This deal follows a 19 month long process beginning in April 2020 by Dominion Diamond Mines filing for insolvency protection under the Canadian Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act.

Diavik has been in production since 2003 and is eventually facing closures in 2025 which will cost hundreds of millions of dollars to fully clean up. Diavik is Canada’s largest diamond mine, and yielded 6.2 million carats of rough diamonds in 2020.

Rio Tinto Minerals boss Sinead Kaufman said in a statement, “Diavik will now move forward with certainty to continue supplying customers with high quality, responsibly sourced Canadian diamonds.”

Worries and concerns began to surround the diamond market due to production coming to a

halt during the global COVID-19 pandemic, with some people worried the market would never recover. However, Alrosa, the world’s top diamond miner by output, claims the market has fully recovered from the effects of the global pandemic, and sales of jewelry and rough diamonds are up 23% this year compared to 2020.

Source: DCLA

Petra to sell 32-ct Pink Diamond from Re-opened Mine

Petra is to offer a 32.32-carat pink diamond at its first tender of goods from the Williamson mine, in Tanzania following a Covid-enforced closure.

The stone is among 26,000 carats that will be offered in Antwerp from 19 to 26 November.
The London-based miner classified Williamson as “an asset held for sale for financial reporting purposes” after a a debt-for-equity restructuring.
The open-pit mine was mothballed in April 2020 to “preserve its liquidity, at a time when diamond pricing was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic”. Operations resumed in Q1 FY 2022.

Source: DCLA

Petra to sell 32-ct Pink Diamond from Re-opened Mine

Petra is to offer a 32.32-carat pink diamond at its first tender of goods from the Williamson mine, in Tanzania following a Covid-enforced closure.

The stone is among 26,000 carats that will be offered in Antwerp from 19 to 26 November.
The London-based miner classified Williamson as “an asset held for sale for financial reporting purposes” after a a debt-for-equity restructuring.
The open-pit mine was mothballed in April 2020 to “preserve its liquidity, at a time when diamond pricing was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic”. Operations resumed in Q1 FY 2022.

Source: DCLA

20-Carat ‘Okavango Blue’ Diamond Goes on Display

The public can now feast their eyes on a big blue diamond thanks to New York’s American Museum of Natural History.  The museum opened an exhibition Tuesday showcasing the “Okavango Blue,” a 20.46-carat oval-cut fancy deep blue diamond on loan from Okavango Diamond Company, which is wholly owned by the government of Botswana. 

It has been given a VVS1 clarity grade from GIA.  The diamond came from Botswana’s Orapa mine and is the largest of its kind found in the country to date.  The Okavango Blue was named after Botswana’s Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site of global importance for biological conservation and diversity.  It’s the first time the diamond is on view to the public and sits at the center of a larger presentation about diamonds from Botswana, exploring industrial uses for diamonds and how Botswana runs its diamond industry as well as educating about the different characteristics of diamonds like size, shape, color, and quality.  Botswana is the second-largest producer of natural diamonds in the world, behind Russia.   Previous

The Okavango Blue Diamond, pictured here in the center display

Next “Our natural diamond resources are managed responsibly in a manner that puts the people of Botswana first,” said Okavango Diamond Company Managing Director Mmetla Masire. “There is a strong sense of local pride knowing that these diamonds are improving the lives of Batswana, with profits directly reinvested in education, infrastructure, and public health. “We are so pleased to share with the world the larger story of the diamond industry of Botswana. The Okavango Blue is not just an ordinary 3-billion-year-old polished carbon element, but rather a physical embodiment of the passing of time, a fragment of eternity. Our diamonds tell the rich history and unique journey of Botswana’s development.” The exhibition sits in the Melissa and Keith Meister Gallery in the museum’s new Allison and Roberto Mignone Halls of Gems and Minerals, which reopened in June after a major renovation.   The Okavango Blue and its corresponding Botswana diamonds exhibition will run for six months, AMNH confirmed. 

Source: DCLA