Lucapa Diamond Company Limited (ASX: LOM) and its partners have announced the recent recovery of a 130 carat gem-quality diamond from the Lulo Diamond Project in Angola, West Africa.
It may be noted that this is the 13th diamond weighing more than 100 carats recovered to date, as well as the second one recovered so far in 2019. The 12th +100 carat diamond recovered was a 128-carat top-colour white Type IIa diamond from the Lulo alluvial mine in Angola.
The company noted that this recovery, together with the continued recovery of other large Special white and fancy coloured diamonds, continue to highlight the very special nature of the Lulo diamond concession.
Lulo Diamond Project
Lucapa’s flagship asset is the Lulo Diamond Project, which is a 3,000km2 concession in Angola’s Lunda Norte diamond heartland, approximately 630km east of the Angolan capital of Luanda. In addition to the Lulo diamond project, LOM also owns a 1.1 Mtpa Mothae kimberlite mine in diamond-rich Lesotho, Brooking in Western Australia, and Orapa Area F in Botswana.
Lucapa operates the Lulo concession in a partnership with Empresa Nacional de Diamantes E.P., Angola’s national diamond company, and private partner Rosas & Petalas. The 1.1 Mtpa Lulo diamond plant includes XRT large-diamond recovery technology capable of recovering individual diamonds of up to 1,100 carats.
Commercial Alluvial Diamond Production
The Lulo partners have been conducting alluvial and kimberlite exploration activities continuously at Lulo since 2008. This early exploration work enabled commercial alluvial diamond production to commence in January 2015.
The Lulo partners conduct alluvial diamond mining operations through Sociedade Mineira Do Lulo. To date, Lulo has achieved gross revenues of ~US$141 million at an average sale price of approximately US$2,000 per carat. This has established Lulo as the world’s highest US$ per carat alluvial diamond mine.
High-Value Large Diamonds Inventory
The company said that the recovery of this latest 130 carat diamond adds to Lucapa’s current inventory of high-value large Special run-of-mine diamonds. Lucapa’s inventory includes top colour white diamonds, weighing 128 carats and 62 carats, as well as a number of fancy pink coloured diamonds.
Lulo’s large and premium value diamonds include more than 800 Specials, which are large diamonds > 10.8 carats. These Specials include 12 +100 carat stones, including Angola’s two largest recorded diamonds weighing 404 carats called the 4th February Stone, and 227 carats. Lulo’s production of high-value coloured diamonds includes a 46 carat pink and a 43 carat yellow.
Sale Scheduled
The company announced that the majority of the diamond inventory is scheduled for sale this quarter by the alluvial mining company, Sociedade Mineira Do Lulo. LOM also said that some diamonds may be extracted and held for tender at a later date.
