Firestone Diamonds has announced that it has agreed to extend the option period granted to Amulet Diamond Corporation to purchase Firestone's BK11 project in Botswana until 31 December 2018, as provided for in the contractual agreements signed earlier between the two.

The BK-11 mine asset is currently on care and maintenance.  Amulet, which is funding the construction and operation of a bulk sampling plant at the BK11 mine so as to further assess the deposit, requested for the extension. Though Amulet has made steady progress towards completing the bulk sampling plant, work has been hampered due to unforeseen equipment delivery delays.

Earlier in the month, Firestone said that as on June 30, 2017, it had achieved commercial production at the Liqhobong Mine in Lesotho, which is expected to achieve production in excess of 800 000 (previously one million) carats per annum.

It said that till June 30, 2017, 365,891 carats were recovered, of which 310,376 carats were sold at an average price of US$90 per carat generating revenue of US$27.8 million. Firestone added that it had a revised nine year life of mine with the option to revert to the 14 year mine plan should the quality of the recovered assortment and rough diamond market improve. It also announced a restructuring of the Group's ABSA debt facility, extending its maturity to December 2023 and obtaining an 18 month standstill on capital repayments from January 2018 to June 2019.