JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Diamond giant Alrosa remains on track to produce 39.3-million carats in 2017, the company’s first VP Igor Sobolev reported this week, pointing out that output for the first nine months of the year had increased by 6% year-on-year.
Alrosa produced 29.54-million carats in the first nine months of the year, compared with 27.88-million carats in the same period last year. Sobolev explained in a media statement that its production had increased as a result of more active alluvial operations and higher output from strategic assets, such as the Udachny underground mine and the Karpinskogo-1 pipe, operated by Severalmaz.
The Udachny underground mine boosted output from 692 000 ct in the first nine months of 2016 to 993 000 ct in the first nine months of this year. The Karpinskogo-1 pipe also delivered significant carat growth with output rising from 688 000 ct to 1.03-million carats in the nine months under review.
The diamond miner’s third quarter output of 10.26-million carats was in line with that of the previous and corresponding year-ago quarters. Alrosa produced 10.36-million carats in the second quarter of 2017 and 10.96-million in the third quarter of 2016.
Alrosa produced 37.56-million carats in 2016 and 38.26-million carats in 2015.