De Beers’ sales volume fell 4% last year due to weakened demand for lower value diamonds in the second half.
The miner sold 33.7 million carats of rough, compared with 35.1 million carats in 2017, as clients bought fewer of its cheaper stones, it reported Thursday.
De Beers’ average price for sales excluding some sales by its joint-venture partners rose 6% to $171 per carat for the year, reflecting the larger proportion of higher-value goods. As a result, rough-sales value increased 2% to $5.39 billion for 2018, according to Rapaport estimates based on De Beers’ sight reports. The company’s average price index, which tracks its rough prices on a like-for-like basis, declined 1% in the second half, but ended 2018 up 1% versus the previous year.
Production grew 6% to 35.3 million carats, exceeding sales volume.
Sales jumped 21% to 9.9 million carats in the fourth quarter, with revenues also increasing, as the company allowed sightholders to defer purchases from the September sight to later months. Production grew 12% to 9.1 million carats for the quarter.
Source: Diamonds.net
Canadian diamond miner Stornoway Diamonds has produced 1.32 million carats in the 2018 financial year, missing its guidance of “at least 1.35 million carats” for the year, Mining Weekly reports.
President and CEO Patrick Godin said that 2018 was a “challenging year” for the company, as the ramp-up of underground production of the Renard 2 underground mine was “impacted by delays in equipment deliveries, a competitive labour market and the presence of more-than-expected low-grade mineralisation on the northern margin of the Renard 2 orebody”. However, the company’s third and fourth quarter production results “demonstrated significant improvements in grade and carat recoveries”. For 2019, Stornoway expects to produce between 1.8 million and 2.10 million carats.
As for sales, in 2018 Stornoway sold 1.04 million carats for gross proceeds of C$141 million ($106,362,645). In the fourth quarter, sales amounted to 253,929 carats, netting C$31 million (23,384,695).
Souce: israelidiamond
The Tanzanian governments confrontational approach to miners operating in the country including Petra Diamonds, has led to Petra suspending operations at its mine.
The Tanzanian government seized a shipment of rough diamonds belonging to Petra. They also question and held a number of staff in the latest assault on the African country’s mining sector.
This includes the concentrate exports ban and the non repayment of value added tax.
