Tag: Argyle mine

Rio Tinto will dig the last diamonds up from the ground at its Argyle deposit in Australia on Tuesday, marking the end of an era in the industry.

The company will continue to sift through ore at the adjacent processing plant until December, and will hold the final rough sale at the end of that month, a company spokesperson said.

Rio Tinto first began operations at Argyle in 1983, with the site since becoming the world’s largest diamond mine by volume, producing more than 825 million carats of rough over its lifetime. The deposit is most famous for its colored diamonds, with more than 90% of the world’s rare pink and red diamonds originating from the mine, according to Rio Tinto.

Those pink diamonds take longer to process than general run-of-mine goods, the company noted. Rio Tinto will continue to sell them into the coming year, and will hold its final Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender in 2021.

Once Rio Tinto completes the final production from Argyle, it will undertake a decommissioning, dismantling and rehabilitation process that will last approximately five years.

Source: Diamonds.net

India’s super rich are rushing to grab an Argyle pink diamond before the primary source of rarest pink diamonds in the world for the last four decades, Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine in Australia closes down operations by the end of the year.

Diamond traders said demand for Argyle pink diamonds has shot up by three times among high net worth Indians compared to last year.

“Argyle pink diamond is a true love for diamond connoisseurs across the globe,” said Darshit Hirani, owner of Mumbai-based P Hirani that only deals with coloured diamonds. “In India, there are business families and high net worth individuals from places like Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad who are aware of the rarity of Argyle pink diamond and they are keen to own one. It is a collector’s item.

Investment-wise it has a lot of value too. Every year, the price of Argyle pink diamond has witnessed a double-digit growth. And once the availability dries up, prices will shoot up further,” he said.

The price of Argyle pink diamond starts at $15,000 a carat and can go up to $1 million depending upon the size and clarity.

Fugitive Indian diamond merchant Nirav Modi was one of the major buyers of Argyle pink diamonds that he had used in his jewellery brand.

For almost 40 years now, the Argyle diamond mine in Kimberley, Western Australia has been producing about 90% of the world’s most coveted pink diamonds.

The mine holds an invitation-only annual Argyle Pink Diamond Tender in which it showcases its best pink, red, and even blue stones from the preceding year.

Its closure is anticipated to disrupt the global diamond market, and the value of coloured diamonds will likely skyrocket as supply falls, traders said.

“Consumers are mostly well aware that this is a good product to purchase. Diamonds continue to enjoy their admiration as an investment,” said Milan Chokshi, who owns Moksh

Jewellery, a diamond jewellery brand that provides its customers information about the dwindling supply pipeline to repose their faith in diamonds. “When mounted in well designed and manufactured jewellery, it not only has investment value, but also artistic and emotional value,” he said.

Not only the Argyle diamonds, natural diamonds will get rarer as days go by as no new mines are coming up, traders said.

Source: economictimes

Rio Tinto has showcased its rare pink, red, violet and blue diamonds from the Argyle mine in Western Australia virtually to a group of collectors, connoisseurs and luxury jewellery houses.

The 2020 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender is a collection of the rarest diamonds from this year’s production of precious gems produced at the east Kimberley, Western Australia site.

The collection was headlined by Lot Number 1, which is the largest Fancy Vivid round brilliant diamond ever offered at the tender.

Weighing in at 2.24 carats, the Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink diamond, also known as Argyle Eternity, is the highlight of the historic collection which comprises of 62 diamonds weighing 57.23 carats.

The Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender also features six hero diamonds, recognised for their unique beauty and named so to ensure there is a permanent record of their place in history as some of the world’s most important diamonds.

In addition to Argyle Eternity, these hero diamonds include the 2.45 carat square Fancy Intense Purple-Pink Argyle Ethereal, the 1.84 carat pear shaped Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink Argyle Sakura, the 0.43 carat Argyle Emrys in greyish blue, the 0.33 carat grey-violet Argyle Skylar and 0.70 carat violet-grey Argyle Infinite.

In addition to these gems the collection also features 12 lots of carefully curated never to be repeated sets of miniature rare Argyle punk, red, blue and violet diamonds weighing in at a total of 13.90 carats.

Rio Tinto general manager of sales and marketing for diamonds Patrick Coppens noted the Argyle mine’s history of producing rare pink gems.

“The Argyle pink diamond story has continued to enthral throughout the years following the remarkable discovery of the Argyle mine in 1979,” Coppens said.

“The 2020 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender is a collection of rare earthly treasures, intricate works of art and with a potency of colour that will be keenly sought after by collectors and connoisseurs from around the world.”

Rio Tinto chief executive of copper and diamonds Arnaud Soirat added that the Argyle mine is the world’s first and only ongoing source of rare pink, red and violet diamonds.

“We have seen and continue to see strong demand for these highly coveted diamonds, which together with extremely limited global supply, supports the significant value appreciation for Argyle pink diamonds,” Soirat said.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions the collection was previewed virtually for exclusive invitees before viewings begin later this year at the Argyle mine, in Perth and in Singapore in Antwerp.

Bids for the precious stones close on December 2 2020.

Source: australianmining