Rio Tinto opens $2.2bn Argyle underground mine
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Diversified giant Rio Tinto on Tuesday officially opened its $2.2-billion Argyle underground diamond mine, in Western Australia.
The miner said the move from openpit mining to an underground operation will extend the life of Argyle until at least 2020, producing some 20-million carats a year and using the latest in block caving technology.
The underground diamond mine was the first of its kind in Western Australia.
Rio’s diamonds and minerals CEO Alan Davies said the Argyle mine had produced some of the world’s most spectacular diamonds and had delivered many benefits to the local region.
“The new Argyle underground mine has allowed us to extend the life of this iconic asset for Rio Tinto and Western Australia. I am proud that we can continue our contribution to local employment and the economic development of the East Kimberley region, as we have over the past quarter of a century.”
The Argyle mine has produced some 800-million carats of rough diamonds over the last 25 years, including a small but consistent supply of the world’s rarest pink diamonds.
“A new chapter begins at Argyle and I am proud to acknowledge the many men and women who have contributed to the discovery and development of the mine and the production of some of the best diamonds the world as ever seen,” Argyle diamond mine MD Kim Truter said on Tuesday.
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