Rio Tinto launches ‘Colour Awakened’ historic collection from Argyle diamond mine

Rio Tinto launched on Wednesday its 2024 Beyond Rare tender, the second in its Art Series, showcasing 48 lots of extraordinarily rare stones from its diamonds business.

Rio Tinto launched on Wednesday its 2024 Beyond Rare tender, the second in its Art Series, showcasing 48 lots of extraordinarily rare stones from its diamonds business.

Titled Colour Awakened, this collection is headlined by seven “Old Masters”, notable historic diamonds from the Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia that operated from 1983 to 2020.

The Old Masters comprise seven round brilliant cut, pink and red diamonds, ranging in size from 0.60 carat to 2.63 carats. All unearthed from the mine over a decade ago in one case, as far back as 1987 each diamond has been carefully retrieved from private vaults and handpicked for inclusion in this year’s tender.

“No other mining company in the world has custody of such a kaleidoscope of coloured diamonds,” Sinead Kaufman, chief executive of Rio Tinto Minerals said in the statement.

In addition to the Old Masters, the Art Series 02 includes legacy inventory of pink, red and violet diamonds from the Argyle diamond mine, together with white and yellow diamonds from Rio Tinto’s Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories.

“Four years on from the closure of the Argyle mine, our Beyond Rare Tender platform is a testimony to the enduring prestige of the Argyle Pink Diamonds brand, the quality of production from our Diavik mine, and the ongoing demand for highly collectible natural diamonds,” Kaufman said.

In total there are 76 diamonds, weighing 39.44 carats, comprising seven Old Masters, including one Fancy Red diamond; 32 single lots of pink and violet diamonds, including one Fancy Purplish Red diamond; and a rarified offering of nine carefully curated diamond sets, two of which include a 2.47 carat Fancy Intense Yellow diamond and a 4.04 carat D colour diamond, respectively, each from Diavik.

The 48 lots will be showcased in London, Australia, Singapore and Belgium, with bids closing on November 18.

Source: mining.com

Burgundy Diamond Mines Chief Exits

Peter Ravenscroft. (Burgundy Diamond Mines)

Burgundy Diamond Mines managing director Peter Ravenscroft has resigned from the Australian company with immediate effect.

The board has appointed Kim Truter, who became nonexecutive chairman of the miner in December 2021, as interim CEO, Burgundy said last week.

Truter has over 30 years of experience in the alluvial and underground mining sector. He has also held executive positions at De Beers in Canada and with Rio Tinto’s diamond unit in Australia.

Meanwhile, Michael O’Keefe, who has been a nonexecutive director since 2017, will take over as executive chairman. He is the former CEO and current executive chairman of Champion Iron, which operates an iron-ore project in Canada. Burgundy has not announced whether it is looking for a long-term successor for Ravenscroft.

Source: Diamonds.net