News – Page 66 – The Diamond Certification Laboratory of Australia (DCLA)

46-Carat pink diamond delivers heart and pear shaped stones

The gem-quality 46 carat rough pink diamond was sold by SML into a cutting and polishing partnership with SML’s preferred buyer, Safdico International.

Under the partnership agreement, SML retained a share in the margin to be generated from the sale of the resultant polished diamonds.

The Lulo partners are pleased to advise the results delivered from cutting & polishing the 46 carat diamond.

The rough diamond delivered three polished diamonds a 15.2 carat Heart and two Pear shaped diamonds weighing 3.3 carats and 2.3 carats.

The main delivery, a 15.2 carat Heart shaped diamond was graded by the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA) as Fancy Intense Orangy Pink, with a clarity grade of VVS1 and Excellent gradings for both polish and symmetry.

The 46 carat pink coloured diamond is the largest gem quality coloured rough diamond recovered to date from Lulo mining operations.

Source: miningreview

Hong Kong Nabs Suspects in Major Smuggling Case

Hong Kong customs officials seized 162 diamonds at a border with China last week, claiming the stones had been smuggled in a driver’s trouser pocket.

The goods had a market value of around HKD 6.4 million ($826,000), making it the largest diamond-smuggling case Hong Kong authorities had detected in the past three years, the Customs and Excise Department said in a statement Friday.

Officers intercepted a truck at Heung Yuen Wai Control Point, a crossing between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and arrested the 33-year-old male driver, the statement reported. They later arrested another 33-year-old man in Sham Shui Po, a neighborhood of Hong Kong, in connection with the ongoing investigation.

“Customs will continue to take stringent enforcement action against cross-boundary smuggling activities through risk assessment and intelligence analysis,” the department continued. “Smuggling is a serious offence.”

The penalty for this type of crime is a fine of up to HKD 2 million ($258,000) and seven years’ imprisonment, it noted.

The incident comes after Chinese officials arrested 121 people in September in connection with alleged smuggling of diamonds. The suspects were accused of bringing CNY 3.88 billion (around $570 million) in goods into the country via illegal means since 2015.

Source: Diamonds.net

Lucapa Diamond Company sells Angola diamonds for $9M

Lucapa Diamond Company has pocketed a neat $9 million from the latest diamond sales from its Lulo alluvial mine in Angola.

The diamonds were sold through Lucapa’s partners, Empresa Nacional de Diamantes and Rosas & Petalas, for an average US$1550 per carat.

With 4269 carats sold, this brings the total proceeds from the sale to US$6.6 million.

Importantly, this sale price is higher than the year-to-date average of US$1371 per carat.

So far, Lucapa has sold just under 20,400 diamond carats over the 2020 calendar year for US$28 million.

Angola and Lesotho diamond exploration
Lucapa produces diamonds from both the Lulo mine in Angola and the Mothae kimberlite mine in Lesotho a small kingdom completely landlocked by South Africa.

The company faced some turmoil earlier this year when COVID-19 restrictions in Angola and South Africa dealt a blow to Lucapa’s operations.

Nevertheless, operations were back up and running at both mines soon after the end of the September quarter.

So far, Lucapa’s Lulo mine has produced 15 100 carat plus diamonds making it one of the highest dollar-per-carat alluvial diamond producers in the world.

At Mothae, Lucapa has produced over 30,000 carats of diamonds in just one year of production, with three diamonds at over 100 carats each.

Source: themarketherald

Botswana Diamonds acquires Sekaka from embattled Petra

Botswana Diamonds (LON:BOD) said on Monday it had completed the acquisition of Sekaka, the exploration vehicle that belonged to embattled rival Petra Diamonds (LON:PDL) and which held three prospecting licenses in the country’s Central Kalahari Game Reserve.

In one of its licenses, Sekaka had singled out the KX36 kimberlite pipe, which is situated about 70 km from Gem Diamonds’ Ghaghoo mine, and 260 km north-west of Botswana’s capital Gaborone.

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Sekaka also had a recently built, fit-for-purpose bulk sampling plant on-site that includes crushing, scrubbing, dense media separation circuits and X-ray recovery modules within a secured area.

The acquisition includes an extensive database, built up over 15 years of exploration.

Botswana Diamonds believes the information contained in the database will provide substantial support to its future kimberlite exploration activities in the mining-dependent country, the world’s second-largest diamond producer.

“We are delighted that this acquisition has now closed. This paves the way to explore commercial development options for KX36 and begin to evaluate the extensive database in conjunction with ours to discover more kimberlites in prime diamond real estate,” chairperson John Teeling said in a media statement.

Diamond exports from the southern African nation dropped 42% to $1.49 billion in the first nine months of this year as production fell 29% to 12.3 million carats due to covid-related restrictions.

Botswana’s mining sector provides a fifth of the country’s GDP and 80% of its foreign exchange earnings.

Mounting woes
Petra Diamonds, the former owner of Sekaka, has been struggling for over two years. Its weak financial position pushed it to shed non-core assets and put itself up for sale in June.

The company reversed the decision in October, opting instead for a debt-for-equity restructuring. The deal would leave existing shareholders with just 9% of the company.

Petra is also dealing with allegations of human rights abuses at its Williamson mine in Tanzania, resulting from the actions of its security guards.

It recently reported a 36% fall in revenue and a net loss of $223 million (168.7 million pounds) for the year ended June 30, as the coronavirus pandemic deepened the company’s financial woes.

Source: mining.com

Gem Unearths 179ct Rough Diamond

Gem Diamonds has recovered a 179 carat rough diamond from its Letšeng mine in Lesotho.

The miner found the high quality, type I diamond on Thanksgiving Day, it said last week. The stone is the 16th diamond over 100 carats the company has found this year. Earlier this month, Gem Diamonds unearthed 104 and 111 carat specimens from the deposit.

The company has already found more diamonds over 100 carats this year than in 2019, when it reported 11 rough diamonds of that magnitude.

Letšeng also yielded a 14.09 carat, pink, type II diamond of high quality last week from its mine in Lesotho.

The miner unearthed the “top quality” type II stone from the deposit on November 24, it said Wednesday. The discovery comes after the company found a 77 carat yellow diamond at the mine in September.

Gem Diamonds has also found 14 diamonds weighing over 100 carats this year, including 104 and 111 carat diamonds earlier this month.

Source: Diamonds.net

De Beers Buys Petra Blue Diamonds for $40M

De Beers has purchased five rough blue diamonds from Petra Diamonds for more than $40 million in partnership with one of its sightholders.

The miner bought the Letlapa Tala collection together with South African wholesaler and manufacturer Diacore for $40.4 million, split equally between the two companies. The type IIb stones, which originated from Petra’s Cullinan mine in South Africa, weigh a total of 85.6 carats, with the individual diamonds ranging from 9.61 to 25.75 carats, Petra said Wednesday.

The sale price at the November 24 tender exceeded analysts’ predictions. Liberum believed the stones would fetch “in the region of $30 million to $40 million,” while Berenberg predicted approximately $26 million, they told Rapaport News.

“The result of this special tender affirms the very high value placed on blue diamonds,” said Petra CEO Richard Duffy. “We believe this to be the first time that five rough blue diamonds of significant size, color and clarity have been offered for sale at one time, and we are delighted that the collection has been bought in its entirety.”

Diacore, which specializes in manufacturing rare, fancy-color diamonds, has worked with De Beers before. It previously cut the miner’s 203.04-carat De Beers Millennium Star, and has also worked on other well-known stones, such as the CTF Pink Star, a 59.60-carat pink bought by Hong Kong jeweler Chow Tai Fook for $71.2 million in 2017. The manufacturer, with cutting facilities in Botswana, South Africa and Namibia, was also one of the pilot participants in De Beers’ Tracr blockchain initiative.

“We are excited and humbled to have the opportunity to unlock the unparalleled beauty of these rare and extraordinary natural diamonds and share them with the world,” said Paul Rowley, executive vice president of diamond trading at De Beers. “Cullinan has produced some of the most beautiful diamonds the world has ever seen, and these blue diamonds are no exception.”

De Beers and Diacore will select expert craftsmen to study and work with the diamonds before presenting them to the public, De Beers added.

De Beers previously owned the Cullinan mine. It sold the deposit to Petra for $149 million in 2007.

Source: Diamonds.net

Largest ever CVD laboratory-grown diamond hailed a “remarkable achievement”

The International Gemological Institute’s (IGI) Hong Kong laboratory has certified the largest chemical vapor deposition (CVD) laboratory-grown diamond received to date.

With a finished weight of 12.75 carats, this collection-quality man-made gemstone was fashioned from a 46.20 carat CVD-grown rough crystal.

According to its creator, Shanghai Zhengshi Technology, it is the largest CVD lab-grown diamond ever produced.

“For the past 15 years, IGI has been at the forefront of lab-grown certification and education,” stated IGI CEO, Roland Lorie. “With this milestone, the Institute continues to establish itself as the prominent leader in the industry and opens the door for future opportunities to exceed current gemological standards.”

IGI gemologists confirmed the 12.75ct stone was Type IIa, giving it exceptional chemical purity and transparency, with VVS2 clarity, F color, and triple-excellent marks in cut-quality and finish.

Following detailed scientific analysis, the laboratory substantiated that the stone had not undergone any post-growth treatments, so it can be categorised as a pure CVD diamond.

“A laboratory-grown diamond of this carat weight, with such a high clarity and color grade, is a remarkable achievement in CVD cultivated diamond technology,” said IGI Hong Kong managing director, Bob Van Es. “As the industry leader in the certification of laboratory-grown diamonds, IGI will continue to follow these new developments closely.”

This news comes only three months after the IGI analysed the Guinness World Record-holding biggest black lab-grown diamond.

Source: professionaljeweller

Synova’s Automated Cutter to Tackle Fancy Shapes

Swiss technology provider Synova has expanded its automated diamond-cutting system to include fancy shapes, it said Monday.

The company, which is part-owned by De Beers, unveiled the DaVinci Diamond Factory last year at the Dubai Diamond Conference. Synova claims the machine will significantly speed up diamond manufacturing from weeks to hours, improve accuracy and symmetry, and reduce costs. However, the version it initially launched could only cut round-brilliant diamonds with up to 57 facets.

“The pandemic restrictions had us more or less blocked from selling in the first half, so instead of sitting here and doing nothing, we developed the machine and made it market-ready,” Joerg Pausch, head of the diamond business at Synova, told Rapaport News. “We developed software add-ons that will allow for cutting of automated fancy shapes. After the first announcement, people were calling us asking if it can do fancy shapes, and that has actually become our strongest request from the market.”

Synova’s initial testing of the automated fancy shapes has shown “very promising results,” it noted. The technology provider will release the new software early next year.

The company has already received a number of orders for the DaVinci from Europe, South Africa and North America, Pausch noted. It also intends to develop the machines to include more automation, he added.

Source: Diamonds.net

Luminous Diamonds’ Debut Collection Celebrates Your Inner Glow

The new fine jewelry company is a leader in rare fluorescent stones.

All diamonds shimmer when light hits them. Under master hands, they are cut into interesting shapes that spark joy. Gems from Luminous Diamonds, a new fine jewelry brand, however, have an attribute that many precious stones don’t: They glow.

Luminous Diamonds’ parent company, Alrosa, is a leader in sourcing fluorescent stones, which are formed under unique geological conditions that leave trace elements during the carbon crystallization process. As a result, Luminous Diamonds shine extra bright in the sun and, most intriguingly, emit a blue glow under UV light.

“These diamonds are stunning, luminous, and make a statement,” says Rebecca Foerster, Alrosa’s president of North America. “They reflect the way modern women wear confidence like a rare jewel, and they dare us all to stand out by sharing our inner selves. Greatness in people, like diamonds, is made under pressure. When a woman follows her own inner light, others see it. Our diamonds are an enduring reminder of this light.”

To highlight this point, Luminous Diamonds enlisted female leaders from disparate industries to model its debut collection in a campaign titled Greatness Under Pressure. They are WNBA athlete Skylar Diggins-Smith, attorney and travel writer Cynthia Andrew, violinist Ezinma Ramsay, gender-fluid advocate Elliott Sailors, model Denise Bidot, and photographer Marian Moneymaker.

The 28-piece collection consists of brilliants and pavé diamonds on open-work hexagon settings. They include long necklaces with pendants, crawler and chandelier earrings, and bracelets. Each design comes with an illuminator charm that emits UV light so you can get that inner glow all the time.

Source: harpersbazaar

De Beers sales rise 12% as diamond demand recovers

De Beers Group announced on Wednesday that sales of rough diamonds rose more than 12% in the latest sales cycle, as demand improves on the back of easing covid-19 restrictions and ahead of the holiday season.

Sales of $450 million between November 2 and November 16 were higher than the $400 million a year earlier, but declined from the $467 million in the eighth cycle between September 21 and October 9.

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“Steady demand for rough diamonds continued in the ninth sales cycle of the year, reflecting stable consumer demand for diamond jewellery at the retail level in the US and China, and expectations for reasonable demand to continue throughout the holiday season,” De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver said in a media release.

“However, the resurgence of covid-19 infections in several consumer markets presents ongoing risks.”

The company has continued to implement a more flexible approach to sales during the year, as a result of restrictions triggered by the pandemic.

It has also cut prices of its stones, sometimes by almost 10% for larger diamonds, in an effort to spark sales.

On Tuesday, rival Petra Diamond Petra reported a 36% fall in revenue and a net loss of $223 million for the year ended June 30, as the pandemic deepened the company’s financial woes.

Source: mining.com