Botswana’s vice president says he’s confident that a new buyer will be found for De Beers by the end of the year – and he hinted that the government could substantially increase its own stake, currently 15 per cent.
Ndaba Gaolathe (pictured) said there were countries, funds and companies that all had a “deep interest” in acquiring the 85 per cent share being offered by Anglo American, and he said he was confident they were “on the right track”.
The UK-based miner is selling off De Beers, its diamond division, together with other assets, to focus on copper, its most profitable activity.
Anglo has written down the value of De Beers twice in just over a year, as sales slump and the company descends from profit to loss. It is now valued at $4.1bn, a fraction of the value when Anglo acquired overall control of the company in 2012.
Gaolathe, quoted by Bloomberg News yesterday (30 April) after an interview in Washington, USA, said the Botswana government could increase it take in De Beers (currently 15 per cent) to as much as 50 per cent.
Anglo is seeking to a sale or IPO of De Beers by the end of this year.
Namibia’s diamond industry may be pushed into deeper crisis if United States (US) president Donald Trump pushes ahead with implementing an export tariff of 21% on Namibia.
The governor of the Bank of Namibia has warned that US tariffs on diamonds – which account for 29 per cent of the country’s exports – could push the country into a deeper crisis.
It is already suffering the worst drought in over a century, compounded by the slump in diamond demand and other economic hardships, spiralling unemployment and a malaria outbreak.
“The diamond is already going through a difficult time because of low demand, and competition from lab-grown diamonds, and now you have all these tariffs,” said governor Johannes !Gawaxab*.
Namibia currently enjoys duty-free exports to the US on diamonds and most other products, but President Donald Trump announced a 21 per cent export tariff for the country in his 2 April “Liberation Day” speech.
He subsequently said there would be a 90-day pause before reciprocal tariffs on a whole list of countries were implemented.
Namibia is world’s eighth biggest diamond producer by carat, and the sixth by value, primarily from marine diamonds. Last year 12.4 per cent of its polished diamonds were sold to the US.
*The exclamation mark represents a click sound in Khoekhoegowab, an official language of Namibia.
De Beers has reportedly lowered rough prices at its current sight in Gaborone, by as much as 15 per cent in some cases.
It generally uses price cuts only as a last resort, and prefers to offer sight holders the right to refuse or sell back part of their allocation.
Insiders have expressed surprise, and in some cases disappointment at the move, with the holiday buying season now here, and polished prices finally showing signs of recovery.
According to the Bloomberg news website, De Beers “cut prices by 10 per cent to 15 per cent for most of the goods it sells”. It cited anonymous insiders.
De Beers has until now maintained its prices in spite of weak demand, and despite the fact that they are often significantly higher than other sellers.
De Beers no longer publishes Sight revenues, but it is reckoned to have sold no more than $130m at its November Sight (average per 2023 Sight was over $360m).
Last week the company confirmed it would be cutting the number of Sightholders – there are currently 69 – as of 2026 in a move designed to build partnerships that “create value”.
The future of De Beers remains uncertain, with parent company Anglo American planning to sell it off, and Anglo itself again the focus of intense speculation.
Rival miner BHP, which bid unsuccessfully for Anglo six months ago, is now allowed to make a renewed approach.
De Beers’ rough-diamond sales soared to $650 million in January, its highest for any month since 2018, as manufacturers replenished inventory following the holiday season.
The total was 18% more than the $551 million the miner garnered a year earlier, and 44% above the $452 million it reported in December, De Beers said Wednesday. This was despite the company implementing a sharp increase in rough prices.
“With the midstream starting the year with low levels of rough and polished inventories, and following strong sales of diamond jewelry over the key holiday season in the US, we saw good demand for rough diamonds at the first cycle of the year as midstream customers sought to restock and to fill orders from retail businesses,” said De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver. “Sales of rough diamonds are also being supported by expected demand ahead of Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day.”
De Beers held the sight in its usual Botswana location, in addition to viewings in Antwerp and Dubai, as the Covid-19 pandemic has prevented many customers from traveling overseas. Its revenue figure encompasses sales that took place between January 18 and February 2, including the sight and auctions.
The January sight is usually one of the biggest of the year, especially after a positive holiday season. Even so, this year’s opening sale of the year exceeded all monthly sales going back to January 2018, when revenues came to $672 million.
De Beers raised prices by 4% to 5% at the sight in response to the improving balance between supply and demand, as reported last month by Rapaport News. Alrosa lifted its prices by 6% to 7%, with the Russian miner scheduled to publish its January sales value on February 10.
