JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The new XRT large diamond recovery circuit at ASX-listed Lucapa Diamond Company’s Lulo project, in Angola, has started commercial operations, processing oversize alluvial gravels.
The XRT technology and larger screens will, as part of the new coarse recovery stream at the 150 t/h diamond plant, provide capacity to recover individual diamonds up to 1 100 ct.
The new XRT technology is also more effective for the recovery of higher-quality low-luminescing Type IIa diamonds.
Lulo began stockpiling all oversize material in February following the recovery of a record 404 ct diamond, which sold for $16-million.
This oversize stockpile stands at about 20 000 bulk cubic metres.
Lucapa CEO Stephen Wetherall on Monday said the commissioning of the new XRT circuit represents a new phase in the development of the Lulo diamond project.
“We have seen what the implementation of this XRT technology delivered for Lucara – allowing their Karowe mine in Botswana to recover the second-largest diamond ever,” he notes.