$16.5 Million for 476 Carat Meya Prosperity Diamond

476 Carat Meya Prosperity Diamond

Graff Jewellers a leader in the diamond business since 1960 has purchased the 476 carat rough diamond  named The Meya Prosperity Diamond.

The Rough diamond was mined in Sierra Leone.

Graff paid $16.5 million for the exceptional rough diamond , another in a long line of extraordinary diamond bought by Graff.

The magnificent rough diamond is the 29th largest diamond ever recovered and is the fifth largest stone from Sierra Leone.

Yellow Diamonds Sell At Bonhams

Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamonds

In 1940 when R.V. Cullinan the son of the renowned diamond magnate Sir Thomas Cullinan asked De Beers director Pierre De Villiers to buy him some diamonds on his next visit to Kimberley.

A collection of Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamonds owned by South Africa’s mining elite has sold at a Bonhams auction for well above its expected price.

The collection sold as two separate lots at the for a total of $773,350.

Letšeng Finds Seventh Big Diamond of the Year

Gem Diamonds Letseng 202 carat rough diamond

Diamond Miner Gem Diamonds has found a 202 carat rough diamond at its  Letšeng mine in Lesotho, Sothern Africa. The rough diamond is the latest of seven recovered over 100 carats this year.

The D colour type IIa diamond was recovered when they mine switched to the higher grade K6 section of the main pipe earlier this year.

The Letšeng mine is one of the highest diamond deposits by value in the world with the an average price of $2,397 per carat for the July tender.

Debmarine Splashes $142M on Diamond Ship

Debmarine Splashes $142M on Diamond Ship

De Beers is planning to add the world’s largest custom built diamond mining vessel to its fleet at a cost of $142 million.

The ship will be the sixth belonging to Debmarine Namibia, a 50/50 joint venture between the miner and the Republic of Namibia, De Beers said Tuesday. Expected to begin operations in 2021, it will enhance the company’s ability to recover diamonds off the southern African country’s Atlantic coast, the rough producer added.

“There is a great amount of potential in Namibia’s marine diamond deposits, and this new vessel will support our strategy to continue to grow our offshore operations,” said De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver.

Earlier this year, De Beers launched the MV SS Nujoma, the world’s largest diamond sampling and exploration vessel. Acquiring the new ship will help the company capitalize on that vessel’s work, and support the long-term future of Namibia’s diamond sector, Cleaver added.

Kleven Verft, a Norwegian ship-building company that constructed the Nujoma, will also build the new vessel, and has signed a memorandum of understanding with De Beers.

Source: Diamonds.net

Rough Trade Cautious at $455M De Beers Sale

De_Beers_Mining

Dealers reported a difficult but stable rough market as De Beers’ November sight closed with a value of $455 million — 4% lower than the same period a year ago.

The rough market improved slightly from the October sight, which was the smallest sale of the year as Indian manufacturing slowed for Diwali. However, sightholders still noted weak profitability on De Beers goods during November, with premiums on the secondary market close to zero.

Most boxes of diamonds from last week’s sight commanded prices on the dealer market that did not cover the costs of doing deals, explained Dudu Harari of diamond broker Bluedax in a report on the sight.

Read More: diamonds.net

De Beers Will Close Four Namibian Diamond Mines

DeBeers Diamond Namdeb

Due to resources dwindling Beers’ joint ventures will close four diamond mines by 2022.

Namdeb is a DeBeers project with the government of Namibia, Will close the Elizabeth Bay mine at the end of 2018 followed by the Daberas deposit at the end of 2019 and Sendelingsdrif in 2020. The main asset  Southern Coastal will close in 2022.

Production saw a shift to offshore assets this past year. For the first nine months of 2017, Debmarine’s production surged 22% to 1.1 million carats.

Subdued world economic growth will make the next few years challenging, mainly due to negative impacts forecast in exchange rates and other indices.

 

Petra Diamonds shares drop

Petra Diamond mine

More trouble for diamond miner Petra Diamonds  yesterday after it warned it is heading into financial trouble with its lenders.

Petra has borrowed heavily to expand its operations in the country. The company is now likely to breach its banking covenants at the end of the year, because of the row with the government in Tanzania. As well as strikes at three of its mines in South Africa.

Petra diamonds is known for the size and quality of the diamonds produced at the famous Cullinan mine outside of Pretoria in South Africa.

 

De Beers Raises Marketing Budget to USD $140M

De Beers Dimaonds Stores

De Beers marketing spend this years is more than $140 million, This is the biggest De Beers push in a decade.

The marketing will focus on increasing consumer demand for diamond jewellery in US, China and Indian markets.

The De Beers brands, Forevermark and De Beers Diamond Jewellers. Will receive the most funding, But Debeers will also increase its contributions to the Diamond Producers Association and India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council.

Stephen Lussier, De Beers’ executive vice president of marketing and CEO of Forevermark. Said the consumer expenditure for diamond jewellery over the past five years collectively has been the highest on record. and this made the outlook positive.

If I buy a certified diamond, how do I know that the diamond in my ring is the one described on the diamond certificate or diamond grading report?

There are a number of ways to verify that your diamond matches the diamond certificate it is purchased with. If you purchased a diamond that is laser inscribed, ask your jeweller to show you the laser inscription under magnification. This way, you will always be able to identify the diamond as your own.

DCLA also performs a verification service, for both DCLA certified diamonds and for diamonds certified by other internationally recognised laboratories. Bring  or send your diamond, together with the diamond grading certificate, to the DCLA laboratory and the diamond will be conclusively matched against the certificate. DCLA can then cold laser inscribe the diamond with either the diamond grading certificate number, or with a personalised message.

How do I know that my diamond certificate or diamond grading report is from an independent laboratory ?

Ask the jeweller if the diamond certificate comes from an independent diamond laboratory or if it produced by a diamond merchant or retailer, then do your research. Make sure the certificate is issued by the DCLA or another highly respected diamond grading laboratory; DCLA is the only diamond grading laboratory worldwide to offer a full-replacement Diamond Grading Guarantee.