Lucapa Mine

Lucapa Diamond Secures Majority Stake in Lulo JV, Strengthening Its Position in Angola

Lucapa Diamond Company, an ASX-listed diamond miner, has finalised its mineral investment contract (MIC) for the Lulo joint venture (JV) in Angola, increasing its stake from 39% to a controlling 51%. The contract now awaits formal approval from Angola’s Ministry of Mineral Resources and Petroleum.

The Lulo JV is focused on kimberlite exploration at the highly prospective Lulo concession. This latest agreement, reached after a three-day negotiation in Angola, was finalised with JV partners Endiama, Rosas & Petalas, and Lucapa, marking a significant milestone for the company.

Lucapa’s managing director and CEO, Alex Kidman, highlighted the strategic importance of securing a majority stake, stating that this move enhances Lucapa’s share of any future exploration success. He also emphasized Angola’s commitment to the project, recognizing Lulo as one of the country’s most significant diamond ventures.

Meanwhile, bulk sampling operations continue at Lulo, with stockpiling from site L130/01 already underway. Further sampling is planned at key targets, including L349, L137, and L130, as the company intensifies its search for Lulo’s exceptional diamonds.

Lucapa Diamond to restart halted Merlin mine

Lucapa Diamond has announced plans to restart production at its mothballed Merlin diamond mine in Australia’s Northern Territory.

The phased approach will begin with an 18-month initial phase, requiring A$15 million ($10m) to excavate and dredge five existing pits. This work is expected to recover around 67,000 carats and generate an estimated A$42 ($27m) million in revenue.

The second phase, spanning 27 months, will focus on vertical pit mining at the Gawain pit, targeting the recovery of 247,000 carats and generating A$246 million ($160m) in revenue. The overall project is expected to yield operating cash flow of $110 million, with a pre-tax net present value of A$40 million ($26m)and an internal rate of return of 75%.

Lucapa anticipates recovering gem and near-gem quality diamonds, which historically accounted for 75% of the mine’s production.

Questions remain about how Lucapa will fund its plans, as the company began the quarter with just US$1.3 million in cash. To address this, Lucapa has entered into a A$1 million short-term loan and is also exploring other funding options such offtake agreements, project-level debt, equity, and government facilities.

Smaller, more achievable target
Lucapa, which also has interests in the Lulo diamond operations in Angola and the Mothae mine in Lesotho, acquired Merlin in 2021 for A$8.5 million.

The restart plan follows a 2022 scoping study that proposed a larger $96 million restart, which was halted due to rising capital costs and declining diamond prices.

The new plan includes constructing a 355,000tpa process plant using existing equipment at Merlin, with a proposed five-year mine life aimed at expanding operations into the 2030s.

Lucapa aims to grow the diamond resource beyond the current estimate of 4.4 million carats while also exploring the region for base metals, given its proximity to the McArthur River lead-zinc-silver mine.

Sorce: mining.com

Lucapa Offloads Mothae Diamond Mine

Lucapa today (25 June) announced the sale of its 70 per cent stake in the Mothae mine, in Lesotho, to a local contractor for a nominal sum.

The Australian miner said it wanted to to focus on its core assets in Africa, where it has a 40 per cent stake in the Lulo alluvial mine, in Angola, and in Australia.

Mothae has produced over 150,000 carats since it started commercial production in 2019, bringing in more than $100m in revenue.

Lucapa says it will sell its stake in stake in Mothae Diamonds (Pty) Ltd to Lephema Executive Transport (Pty) Ltd, which has provided it with long-term contract mining services, for A$10,000 (US$6,660).

Mothae Diamonds, which owns the site, will pay Lucapa A$1m (US$666,000) in outstanding technical services payments.

“This agreement is the result of a period of offer and negotiation involving Lucapa and several interested parties,” said Lucapa managing director and CEO Nick Selby.

“(Lephema) Executive has a successful history with the Mothae Diamond Mine, having provided long-term contract mining services. Lucapa wanted to, as far as possible, see

this mine continue to operate and Executive are best placed to achieve this.

“The signing of this agreement is a key step towards Lucapa streamlining its portfolio and executing the new strategy which will focus on assets in Australia and Angola”.

Mothae has indicated resources of 180,000 carats and inferred resources of 960,000 carats, according to December 2023 figures provided by Lucapa, with a modelled per carat value of $606.

Lucapa said in its sales material that Mothae has recovered 13 +100ct diamonds (largest Type IIa gem 213cts), and 10 diamonds valued at over $1m.

Source: IDEX

Lucapa recovers 195 carat diamond from Lulo mine

Lucapa Diamond announced Tuesday that together with its Lulo alluvial mine partners, Endiama and Rosas & Petalas, the company has recovered a 195 carat Type IIa diamond from its Lulo mine in Angola.

The diamond is the sixth largest and the 44th +100 carat diamond to be recovered from the Lulo mine, the company said, adding that the 195 carat Type IIa diamond is the fourth +100 diamond to be recovered at Lulo this year.

The mine, which hosts the world’s highest dollar-per-carat alluvial diamonds, began commercial production in January 2015. Only a year later, it delivered the largest ever diamond recovered in Angola a 404 carat white stone later named the “4th February Stone”.

Lucapa has a 40% stake in the Lulo mine. The rest is held by Angola’s national diamond company (Endiama) and Rosas & Petalas, a private entity.

Angola is the world’s fifth diamond producer by value and sixth by volume. Its industry, which began a century ago under Portuguese colonial rule, is successfully being liberalized.

Source: Mining.com

Diamond sales at Lucapa total $49.5 million year-to-date

African miner Lucapa Diamond Company said yesterday its latest sales of diamonds from the Lulo alluvial mine in Angola and the Mothae kimberlite mine in Lesotho totaled $10.4 million.

Year to date sales are $45.9 million.

The average price per carat is $1,087 at the Lulo Mine. Excluded from the figures is a 46-carat pink diamond, which has been exported by SML to Antwerp and is being assessed for polishing.

At the Mothae Mine, the average price per carat was $837. The mine began operations in January. The company said the mine has already recovered seven +50 carat diamonds.

Lucapa Diamond is focused on becoming a producer of large and premium-quality diamonds from alluvial and kimberlite sources.