The first parcel of rough diamonds from the Mothae mine in Lesotho sold at tender in Antwerp for a total of US$ 3.8 million, Lucapa Diamond Company Limited and the Government of the Kingdom of Lesotho announced today.

The parcel of 5,411 carats of rough diamonds from the new 1.1Mtpa Mothae kimberlite plant in Lesotho 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, they added.

The sale represented an overall average price per carat of US$ 707 for the total run of mine parcel which included many small stones in the -11 sieve size fraction and below.

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. The highest price for an individual stone was US$ 36,664 per carat.

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.

Lucapa explained that 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.

Lucapa Managing Director Stephen Wetherall said Lucapa and the GoL were extremely pleased with the results of the first sale of Mothae diamonds. “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,” he said.

Wetherall stated that the strong sales prices achieved for quality run of mine production, in the absence of a single stand-out stone, represented a great start for Mothae. “It augurs well for its future as a producer of exceptional diamonds and its contribution to the Basotho nation,” he concluded.

Pic caption: Selection of Mothae diamonds sold in the Antwerp tender

Pic courtesy: Lucapa Diamond Company