TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Southern Africa-focused diamond miner Lucara Diamond Corp on Tuesday announced that it had recovered 13 diamonds larger than 100 ct since the start of the second quarter.
Of those stones, two weighed more than 200 ct each, and eight were classified as gem-quality diamonds.
The five largest gem-quality stones weigh 259 ct, 239 ct, two stones each weigh 153 ct and the last is a 133 ct stone.
Since the beginning of the second quarter, the company’s flagship Karowe mine, in Botswana, has produced 239 diamonds larger than 10.8 ct, including 27 diamonds with weights between 50 ct and 100 ct.
Lucara also said that it would hold its second exceptional stone tender of the year on July 18. The company is in the process of selecting stones for this tender and would post this information along with a brochure on the company's website when available.
“The ongoing recovery of these large and exceptional white diamonds continues to drive increased value for Lucara and its shareholders and has established the Karowe mine as a rare source of truly exceptional diamonds. The ongoing recovery of such stones is encouraging for a potential third exceptional stone tender during the fourth quarter of 2014,” Lucara president and CEO William Lamb said.
In the past year, Lucara’s TSX-listed stock had almost tripled, and on Wednesday traded at C$1.87 apiece.