News – Page 96 – The Diamond Certification Laboratory of Australia (DCLA)

HRD Antwerp Grades ‘World’s First Wearable CVD All Diamond Ring’

HRD Antwerp has graded what it says is the world’s first ring that is entirely made from a lab-grown diamond made by Dutch Diamond Technologies (DD).

‘Project D’, DD’s name for the ring, took a year to manufacture and was created in honor of the company’s 10th anniversary, HRD said.

“The ring was made from a large piece of a 155-carat rough CVD lab-grown diamond which was polished using laser cutting and traditional techniques into a ring which has 133 facets, compared to 57 for a standard brilliant cut,” HRD said. “The ring has a total weight of 3,865 carats. It wasn’t until 2017 that it became technically possible to grow large enough monocrystalline lab-grown diamond plates.

“This is not the first ring to be created from a single diamond. In 2011, Shawish, a Swiss jeweler, unveiled the world’s first wearable ring made from a single crystal of natural diamond. Additionally, another lab-grown ‘all diamond’ ring, called (RED), was conceived by the Diamond Foundry, but as far as we are aware, the production phase has not yet started.”

Ton Janssen, CEO of Dutch Diamond Technologies, said: “For our 10th anniversary we wanted to create something stunning that would highlight our innovative and high-tech techniques. I think we’ve more than succeeded with the one-off ‘Project D’ ring. It’s a true “European” ring: grown in Germany, cut in the Netherlands and graded by HRD Antwerp in Belgium. HRD Antwerp has a well-earned reputation for delivering a perfect grading system thanks to their sophisticated equipment and dedicated team.”

The quality and carat weight of CVD synthetic diamonds has increased significantly over the last 10 years, taking up to 5 weeks to grow a diamond plate of this exceptional size in a laboratory. Growing a diamond with the CVD process requires a heated mixture of hydrocarbon gas and hydrogen in a vacuum chamber at very low pressure and elevated temperatures (900-1200°), he explained.

“DD might be relatively new to cut diamonds for the jewelry market, but they have created an impressive ring for their 10th anniversary,” said Michel Janssens, CEO of HRD Antwerp. The outstanding cutting and polishing work has resulted in a brilliant light reflection which emphasizes the beauty of the ring.”

HRD Antwerp has thoroughly analyzed the ring and delivered the following grading results: clarity VVS2, color E, Fluorescence Nil, Polish very good and Symmetry excellent. A lab-grown diamond grading report is easily distinguishable from a natural diamond grading report by its green color cover, the lab added.

Source: idexonline.com

Turkish court jails Irish tourist for swallowing $40,000 worth diamond in theft attempt

A Turkish court has sentenced an Irish man to more than eight years in prison for attempting to steal a diamond ring worth $40,000 from a jewellery store in Turkey’s southern Muğla province, Turkish newspaper Sabah reported late Saturday.

Ian Cambell was on holiday in Muğla’s Marmaris district. The 54 year-old man attempted to steal a 2.5-carat diamond from a local jewellery store by swallowing it on Oct. 4, 2018. Turkish police arrested him immediately after the incident and he was later released on parole.

Campbell agreed to have the stone removed at a private hospital even though he was warned it could be risky and that he would have to pay for the procedure himself. After the diamond was removed, he was taken to court.

A Turkish court on Saturday sentenced him to 8 years and 9 months in prison for theft.

Campbell had earlier explained to a Turkish prosecutor that he swallowed the diamond because he “fell into trance” the moment he saw it.

“I fell into trance when I saw the diamonds. The jeweller was telling something to me but I couldn’t even hear him because I was in trance. When I was conscious again, I found myself hiding a diamond in my pocket and I swallowed it in panic as jewellers started to search it,” he was quoted as telling the prosecutor.

Source: ahvalnews

ALROSA’s First Auction of Large Rough Diamonds of 2019 Raises $9.6M

ALROSA held its first auction this year for special size (over 10.8 carats) rough diamonds in Israel.

The company sold 92 large rough diamonds with a total weight of 1,570 carats. The overall revenue from sales amounted to $9.6 million. Firms from Israel, Russia, Hong Kong, Belgium, India, the United Arab Emirates and the United States participated in the auction, the miner said.

“The auction in Israel is the first in our schedule, and we are satisfied with its results,” said Evgeny Agureev, Member of the Management Board, Director of the United Sales Organization at ALROSA.

“Until the end of the year, we will hold five more auctions here. We also continue to analyze the situation in the global diamond market and see some difficulties with demand, however, in the next two months we expect it to recover.”

In 2018, ALROSA held six auctions for special size rough diamonds in Israel, with revenue for the year reaching almost $90 million.

Lucapa Angola Tender Rakes In $17M USD

Lucapa Diamond Company sold $16.7 million worth of rough stones from its Lulo mine at the first diamond tender under Angola’s new sales rules.

“The exceptional sale prices achieved for the Lulo diamonds reflected the highly competitive bidding from leading international diamantaires and large-stone manufacturers from eight countries that participated in the tender,” the company said Friday.

The miner sold seven special-size stones through an electronic tender in Luanda organized by state-owned diamond-marketing company Sodiam. Six white stones weighing 114.94, 85.24, 75.62, 70.08, 62.05 and 43.25 carats, and a 46.77-carat pink, fetched a combined average price of $33,530 per carat at the sale, which took place January 30 to 31. Lucapa has been withholding the stones from sale throughout the year to sell them under the reformed rules, which were designed to improve transparency and pricing.

Under the previous regulations, miners were required to sell their diamonds to a list of buyers Sodiam selected, limiting competition for the stones and causing pricing to fall below market levels. The new system allows companies to offer 60% of their production to clients of their choice.

Lucapa has now sold $141 million worth of rough Lulo diamonds since it began commercial operations in 2015, at an average price of $2,105 per carat.

The company’s share price rose 8% Friday following the announcement.

Source: Diamonds.net

Mountain Province Diamonds Announces Inclusion of 60 Carat Fancy Vivid Yellow Rough Diamond in its February Sale

Mountain Province Diamonds Inc today announces that it will include in it its upcoming, February rough diamond sale, an exceptional quality, 60.59 carat, fancy vivid yellow rough diamond. The diamond was recovered at the Company’s Gahcho Kué Mine in October 2018.

Reid Mackie, the Company’s Vice President Diamond Marketing commented “the discovery of this diamond demonstrates our ability to produce very large, high quality, fancy coloured diamonds. We are thrilled to be able to include it in our upcoming sale and present our customers with the opportunity to bid for this important piece of the mine’s history”.

Also included in the sale will be more than 50 other large, high quality white and fancy coloured rough diamonds. Viewings will take place between February 11^th to 21^st at the offices of Bonas-Couzyn in Antwerp, Belgium.

Mountain Province’s Gahcho Kué Mine, located at the edge of Canada’s Arctic Circle, is the world’s largest and richest new diamond mine and since the start of production in late 2016 has established itself as a regular producer of exceptional, gem quality, large diamonds. In 2018, Mountain Province sold more than 400 individual diamonds larger than 10.8 carats.

Source: prnewswire

New Alrosa Client List Excludes Leviev Firm

Alrosa has stopped supplying rough diamonds to Lev Leviev’s LLD Diamonds through its contract-sales arrangement, as part of a reshuffle of the miner’s long-term client list.

The tycoon’s Israel-based firm is one of “several” former customers that have dropped off the 2019 supply roster, known as the Alrosa Alliance program, the Russian company said.

“Last year, there was a decision to exclude LLD from the long-term client list due to noncompliance with Alrosa Alliance principles,” a spokesperson for the Russian producer explained in an email to Rapaport News this week. The Russian company has guidelines that state various possible reasons for suspending a client.

Alrosa has not confirmed the identity of the other companies it removed from the list.

LLD has been under the spotlight since Israeli police arrested several of its employees in November on suspicion of smuggling diamonds worth hundreds of millions of shekels into the country. Alrosa declined to say whether the move was directly related to the probe, while LLD did not respond to a request for comment.

The Alrosa Alliance accounts for about 70% of the miner’s rough sales by volume. It operates a similar arrangement to De Beers’ sightholder system, offering stable supply to companies that can demonstrate demand and comply with its rules on business practices.

Alrosa has expanded its list to 59 long-term buyers of gem-quality rough for 2019, from 56 last year. The six new members were Hong Kong-based jewelry retailer Chow Sang Sang, Indian diamond firms Kapu Gems, Mohit Diamonds, VD Global and M. Suresh Company, and Switzerland-based manufacturer Richold.

“We confirm the inviolability of Alrosa Alliance principles, and are interested in diversifying our client base, which has grown compared to last year,” said Evgeny Agureev, director of Alrosa’s United Selling Organization. While the new customers showed sufficient “trading activity” to warrant gaining long-term supply, “several companies dropped out from the list,” he added.

The miner also accepted two Belgian companies, H.D. Diam and IGC Group, as candidates for potential future long-term contracts. Both firms have previously bought from Alrosa in ad-hoc deals, known as spot transactions.

Last year, Alrosa switched to annual assessments of clients’ rough-diamond allocations, bringing its policy more in line with that of De Beers. Under the old system, Alrosa’s supply deals with clients held for three years.

Source: Diamonds.net

Mouawad Cuts Record Yellow Diamond

Mouawad Dragon Rough to Polished Diamond

Mouawad has manufactured a 54.21 carat polished yellow stone, which, it claims, is the largest of its shape and color the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has ever graded.

The company named the round brilliant cut, fancy vivid yellow stone the Mouawad Dragon, as its color is reminiscent of a “dragon’s magical powers and fiery eyes,” it said Monday.

The rough stone was found in an alluvial deposit in South Africa, and took Mouawad six months to cut and polish. The jeweler, which manufactures its rough in South Africa, New York and Bangkok, will set the stone in a necklace that will be part of an ensemble. The entire collection will be unveiled in March, the company told Rapaport News.

“We’re thrilled to have had the opportunity to craft this extraordinary diamond from the rough, and we will soon continue the creative process by designing a masterpiece that befits its dazzling beauty,” said Fred Mouawad, co guardian of the jeweler’s diamond division.

In August, Mouawad bought the round, 51.38 carat, D color, VVS1 clarity, triple Ex Dynasty diamond from Alrosa at tender. It was the most expensive polished stone the Russia-based miner had sold. The jeweler has renamed the Dynasty originally the centerpiece of a five-stone collection that fetched approximately $10 million combined the Mouawad Dynasty. The stone now weighs 51.12 carats and has flawless clarity, Mouawad said. The company will reveal more details about its plans for the stone next month.

Source: Diamonds.net

De Beers sells $505m rough diamonds in first sales cycle

Diamond producer De Beers on Tuesday reported that rough diamond sales in this year’s first sale cycle had reached $505-million.

This is $167-million less than the $672-million earned in the first sales cycle of 2018. Sales in the previous cycle – cycle ten of 2018 – reached $544-million.

“Rough diamond sales during the first sales cycle of 2019 were lower than those for the equivalent period last year, reflecting higher than normal sales in the previous cycle and the slow movement of lower-value rough diamonds through the pipeline,” De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver commented.

Bloomberg on Tuesday reported that diamond miners are struggling across the board, especially those producing cheaper and smaller gems where there is too much supply. Traders and manufacturers that buy them are also struggling to make a profit. Last month, some of Rio Tinto Group’s customers refused to buy cheaper diamonds, while De Beers has been forced to cut prices and offer concessions to buyers.

Source: miningweekly

Lucara recovers 240-ct gem from Karowe

Earlier this month, Lucara Diamond Corp. recovered a 127 carat top white diamond from its Karowe mine. And the good new just keeps coming. This time the company has recovered a 240 carat top white gem from the same mine.

Since mining began in 2012 at Karowe, a total of 43 diamonds heavier than 200 carats have been recovered, including 12 stones larger than 300 carats.

Lucara CEO Eira Thomas commented, “This top white 240 carat gem diamond was mined from the M/PK(S) unit within the South lobe, providing continuing confirmation that large, high quality gem diamonds are recovered throughout the kimberlite, in all lobes and phases on a regular basis.”

Petra Diamonds shares fall on lower diamond prices at flagship mine

Shares of Petra Diamonds Ltd slid as much as 10 percent on Monday after lower diamond prices at its flagship Cullinan mine and an increase in net debt took the shine off higher half-year revenue.

The company has been trying to keep a lid on debt after heavy investments and a stronger South African rand had burdened the miner, which pays in rands and earns in dollars.

Petra’s net debt jumped to $557.2 million (422.06 million pounds) in the six months to Dec. 31 from $538.9 million as at Sept. 30. The company was forced to raise $178 million last May by issuing equity to cut its debt burden.

Rough diamond prices fell to $96 per carat from $140 per carat in the previous year at the Cullinan mine, which in 1905 yielded the Cullinan diamond the largest rough gem diamond ever found and now part of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom.

“The significantly lower realised Cullinan pricing and the impact on cashflow generation sees us take renewed caution,” said RBC, which cut the miner’s price target to 40 pence from 65 pence after the company’s half-year report.

Petra posted an 8 percent jump in revenue to $207.1 million, about 10 percent below RBC forecasts of $230 million, hurt by lower pricing at Cullinan. The company stuck to its production forecast 3.8 – 4.0 million carats for fiscal 2019.

Shares of the miner, which runs four mines in South Africa and one in Tanzania, were 8.5 percent lower at 41.12 pence.

Source: Euronews