Mothae diamonds debut sale worth A$5.3 mn

Highest price achieved for

Mothae diamond of US$36,664 per carat

Lucapa Diamond reports the results from the first sale of diamonds from the new Mothae kimberlite plant in Lesotho. The parcel of 5,411 carats of rough diamonds sold at tender in Antwerp for a total of US$3.8 million or

A$5.3 million.

The diamonds were recovered during the plant ramp-up phase in Q4 2018 and in the first month of commercial mining operations at Mothae in January 2019. The sale represented an overall average price per carat of US$707 (A$987) for the total run of mine parcel. The highest price achieved for an individual Mothae diamond was US$36,664 per carat.

As previously noted, the efficiency of the new Mothae plant in treating the near surface weathered material has resulted in the liberation of additional diamonds, primarily small stones below the plant’s 3mm bottom cut-off screen size. 

Most of these additional small diamonds are in the -11 and below sieve size fractions. While these small diamonds generate additional revenue, they also reduce the overall average price per carat.

The ~4,100 carats of Mothae diamonds included in the sale parcel in the +11 sieve size fraction and above sold for ~US$3.78 million, representing an average price per carat of ~US$900 (~A$1,260). 

In contrast, the ~1,300 carats of small Mothae diamonds in the -11 sieve size fraction and below sold for ~ US$46,000, representing an average price per carat of just US$36. The recovery of small diamonds below the 3mm BCOS through the Mothae plant will normalise or diminish as mining progresses into the more competent kimberlite material with depth. Lucapa Managing Director Stephen Wetherall said Lucapa and the GoL were extremely pleased with the results of the first sale of Mothae diamonds produced from the new 1.1Mtpa diamond plant.

“The solid bidding we witnessed in Antwerp for this first commercial parcel has certainly marked Mothae’s arrival on the international scene as a producer of top-quality goods, complementing those from our Lulo mine,” said Mr Wetherall.

“The strong sales prices achieved for our quality run of mine production, in the absence of a single stand-out stone, represent a great start for Mothae which augurs well for its future as a producer of exceptional diamonds and its contribution to the Basotho nation.”