Petra Diamonds – Page 14 – The Diamond Certification Laboratory of Australia (DCLA)

Gem Diamonds unearths 125-carat diamond in Lesotho

Africa-focused Gem Diamonds has found a 125 carat rough stone at its Letšeng mine in Lesotho, the miner’s second rock over 100 carats mined this year.

The company, known for the recovery of large, high quality stones in 2020, has seen output of high quality diamonds surpassing the 100 carat mark become less frequent over the past year.

In 2021, Gem Diamonds found only six of such diamonds at Letšeng, compared to the 16 it discovered in 2020.

The find comes as prices for small diamonds have jumped about 20% since the start of March, as cutters, polishers and traders struggle to source stones outside Russia.

State owned Russian miner Alrosa, the world’s top diamond producer by output, was hit with US sanctions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Higher prices for lower end stones are good news for miners, but not a game changer, experts say. While every mine is different, a general rule is that 20% of production the best stones account for about 80% of profits.

Since acquiring Letšeng in 2006, the company has found more than 60 white gem quality diamonds over 100 carats each, with 16 of them recovered last year. At an average elevation of 3,100 metres (10,000 feet) above sea level, Letšeng is also one of the world’s highest diamond mines.

Source: mining.com

Gem Diamonds’ Revenue Rises in Q1 2022

Gem Diamonds’ revenue in Q1 2022 (ending March 2022) has gone up 4% quarter-on-quarter and 19% year-on-year to $52.1 million, IDEX Online reports.

The miner, which owns 70% of the Letseng mine in Lesotho, sold 28,461 carats during the quarter – a rise when compared to the 24,790 carats it sold in the previous quarter. However, prices fell from $2,018 to $1,831, according to the report.

Clifford Elphick, Gem Diamonds’ CEO, said: “We remain confident about the outlook for diamond prices, particularly for Letseng’s large high-value diamonds with an average price of $1,831 per carat achieved during the period. Prices achieved on a like-for-like basis continued the largely upward trend from 2021.”

Source: israelidiamond.co.il

Christie’s to Auction $18M D-Flawless Diamond

Christie’s will offer a 103.49-carat diamond that could fetch up to $18 million at its upcoming New York sale.

The emerald-cut, D-Flawless, type IIa stone, called the Light of Africa diamond, will headline the auction house’s Magnificent Jewels sale on June 8, it said Monday. It will be among the items featured as part of Christie’s luxury week.

The diamond was cut from a 299.3-carat rough Petra Diamonds recovered from its Cullinan mine in South Africa in January 2021. Petra then sold the diamond to Dubai-based diamond-sourcing and supply company Stargems DMCC in March of that year for $12.18 million. It is the third-largest high-quality white diamond recovered from Cullinan since Petra acquired it in 2008, the miner noted.

Christie’s will preview the diamond in Geneva from May 6 to 11, followed by Hong Kong from May 22 to 24, before showing it in New York between June 3 and 7.

Source: Diamonds.net

Star Diamond confirms Type IIa high value diamonds at Orion North, Taurus kimberlites

Star Diamond has completed a study into the abundance of Type IIa diamonds in parcels recovered from the Early Joli Fou geological units at the Orion North (K120, K147 and K148) and Taurus kimberlites (K118, K122 and K150).

The pipes are located within the Fort a la Corne diamond district of central Saskatchewan, including the Star–Orion South diamond project, on properties held in a joint venture with Rio Tinto Exploration Canada.

These diamond parcels were recovered by Star Diamond between 2006 and 2008 from 120-cm diameter drilling programs. The latest study confirms that unusually high proportions of Type IIa diamonds are present in both the Orion North and Taurus kimberlites.

Of particular note is the high proportion of Type IIa diamonds in the Orion North 147-148 EJF (52%), of which 66% of the 24 stones, 0.66 carats and above are Type IIa. The largest Type IIa diamond identified was a 6.88-carat stone from Orion North (K147-K148 EJF).

Senior technical advisor George Read said that the Type IIa diamonds at Orion North and Taurus are top white in colour, Type IIa diamonds are rare and account for less than 2% of all natural rough diamonds mined from kimberlites. Many high-value, top colour, large specials (greater than 10.8 carats) are Type IIa diamonds, which include all 10 of the largest known rough diamonds recovered worldwide.

The study also confirms and augments an earlier study of Type IIa diamonds being present in the Fort a la Corne kimberlites with Star (26.5%) and Orion South (12.5%).

A target for further exploration completed by Star Diamond in 2014 estimated that between 881 million and 1.04 billion tonnes of the major EJF units, containing between 46 and 79 million carats, occur within the Orion North and Taurus kimberlite clusters.

Orion North (K147, K148 and K220) alone is estimated to contain between 340 million and 410 million tonnes of EJF kimberlite with an estimated range of grade of 2.75 to 8.37 carats per hundred tonnes.

Source: mining.com

Sotheby’s Rakes In $57.5M for De Beers Blue

A record blue diamond co-owned by De Beers far outstripped its presale estimate in a stand-alone sale at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong, garnering HKD 450.9 million ($57.5 million), the auction house said Wednesday.

*The 15.10-carat De Beers Cullinan Blue diamond*

The step-cut, 15.10-carat, fancy-vivid-blue, internally flawless stone, called the De Beers Cullinan Blue, is the largest of its color to appear at auction. The stone, which sold to an unnamed buyer, had been expected to fetch up to $48 million.

Petra Diamonds discovered the 39.35-carat rough in April 2021 at its Cullinan mine in South Africa. In July, De Beers and Diacore bought the stone for $40.2 million, and Diacore manufactured the piece into the final polished.

To date, only five blue diamonds weighing more than 10 carats have come to auction, none of which has exceeded 15 carats, Sotheby’s explained. Similar blue diamonds have also fetched high prices, including the Blue Moon of Josephine, a cushion-shaped, 12.03-carat, fancy-vivid-blue, internally flawless diamond that sold for $48.5 million at Sotheby’s Geneva in 2015. Meanwhile, the Oppenheimer Blue, a step-cut, 14.62-carat, fancy-vivid-blue, VVS1-clarity stone, garnered $57.5 million at a Christie’s Geneva sale in 2016.

Source: Diamonds.net

Christie’s to Sell the Red Cross Diamond

One of the world’s largest yellow diamonds weighing 205.7 ct and known as the Red Cross Diamond is to be auctioned by Christie’s London.

The fancy intense yellow, cushion-shaped stone has a pavilion distinctively faceted in the shape of a Maltese cross.

The original rough gem was recovered by De Beers, in South Africa, in 1901 and was sold in 1918 in aid of the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St John.

It raised $13,000 equivalent to $780,000 in today’s money when it was sold at Christie’s London to the famous London firm S.J. Phillips.

It was sold again in November 1973, achieving CHF 1.8 million at Christie’s Geneva and returned to private ownership.

The diamond will again be offered for sale at Christie’s London on 11 May, with an undisclosed part of the sale revenue to be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

We have asked Christie’s for the estimate, which is available “on request”.

Source: IDEX

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: IDEX

Petra Diamonds mulls selling Williamson mine

South Africa’s Petra Diamonds is considering selling its Williamson mine in Tanzania, even as it continues to work on bringing the operation back online in the second half of 2021.

Delivering its year-end results, Petra said that Williamson had been classified as a discontinued operation, which will mean an accounting loss of $52.1 million for the company. The mine was mothballed in April last year after diamond prices dropped following the global covid-19 outbreak.

BMO analyst Raj Ray said that while a sale could be viewed positively by the market, he sees potential risks in terms of realizing the value of $84 million (net book value of about $26 million at F2021 year-end) the bank ascribes to the asset, given the recent challenges.

“Recent efforts to procure a $25 million working capital facility with a local bank for the restart have so far been unsuccessful,” Raj wrote in a note to investors.

Petra has faced allegations of human rights abuses at the mine, resulting from the actions of its security guards.

The miner formed in February an internal committee to oversee the investigation, which concluded that “regrettable” incidents did take place at the mine in the past. Shortly after, it reached a £4.3 million (about $6m) settlement with claimants, even though it did not admit liability.

The company is currently engaged in talks with the Tanzanian government over a revised regulatory framework, which would lead to Williamson’s re-opening.

A key issue in those discussions concerns a parcel of 71,654 carats of diamonds effectively placed in limbo after deceased President John Magufuli blocked their export in 2017.

Turnaround
Despite covid-19 and issues at Williamson, Petra has staged a sharp turnaround in fortunes over the past financial year. It cut net debt by two-thirds in the year ended June 30 after a capital restructuring completed in March and rising sales drove strong growth in free cash flow.

Petra ended fiscal 2021 with net debt of $228 million, down from just under $693 million last year. Net profit reached $196.6 million, reflecting a $213.3 million gain after the successful debt restructuring.

Revenue rose 65% to $402.3 million on the back of higher sales of exceptional stones.

As for fiscal 2022, Petra reaffirmed production guidance of 3.3 million-3.6 million carats, with capital expenditure of $78 million- $92 million.

Source: Mining.com

Petra Diamonds in Partnership Deal With Stargems on White And Blue Diamonds

*342.92 carat Type IIa white diamond: Petra Diamonds*

Petra Diamonds Limited has sold a 342.92 carat Type IIa white diamond and an 18.30 carat Type IIb blue diamond, both recovered at the Cullinan Diamond Mine in South Africa.

The stones have been sold into a partnership with Stargems (Pty) Ltd. Petra will receive an upfront payment of US$10.0 million for the 342.92 carat stone and US$3.5 million for the 18.30 carat stone, as well as retaining a 50% interest in the profit uplift of the polished proceeds of both diamonds, after costs.

Stargems is a Johannesburg-based subsidiary of Stargems Group, an international and vertically integrated diamond company, and is a diamond beneficiation licencee, allowing for the two diamonds to be cut and polished in South Africa.

Petra’s Chief Executive Officer Richard Duffy commented: “These two diamonds are wonderful examples of the very high quality and rare white and blue diamonds that are so well known from the Cullinan Diamond Mine. We are delighted that both stones will be manufactured in South Africa and it is fitting that we will be working with Stargems, who specialise in the sourcing and supply of the finest diamonds to customers across the world.”

Meanwhile, Shailesh Javeri, Chairman of Stargems Group, commented: “The stones will be beneficiated in South Africa at our Stargems cutting factory in Johannesburg and we look forward to working closely with Petra during the manufacturing process to reveal the eventual polished gems.”

Source: Idex

Petra Diamonds finds 342-carat rough at Cullinan mine

South Africa’s Petra Diamonds has recovered a 342.92-carat Type IIa white rough at its iconic Cullinan mine.

The company said the diamond is “exceptional” quality, in terms of both its colour and clarity, and that it will likely be sold at the September tender.

Petra fetched in March $12.2 million for a 299.3-carat Type IIA white diamond. That meant it obtained $40,701 per carat, which exceeds the $34,386/ct received for the 424.89-carat “Legacy of the Cullinan Diamond Mine” in May 2019.

Type II diamonds are found less frequently and are more valuable than Type I diamonds, as they have no measurable nitrogen impurities. This gives them exceptional transparency and brilliance.

Cullinan is known as the birthplace of the famed 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond, which was cut to form the 530-carat Great Star of Africa.

The operation also yielded the 317-carat Second Star of Africa.

They are the two largest diamonds in the British Crown Jewels.

Cullinan is known as the world’s most important source of blue diamonds, such as the 39.34-carat stone Petra found in April and which sold for $40.2 million earlier this month. It was the company’s highest price ever for a single stone.

Source: Mining.com