DiamondCorp, the Southern African diamond mining, development and exploration company, announced the sale of two run of mine parcels of diamonds from Lace diamond mine, to South African diamantaires when the company’s reserve prices were exceeded during the South African export process. The two parcels comprised 1,838 carats of run-of-mine kimberlite diamonds and 1,679 carats of tailings diamonds, and were sold for an average of $189/ct and $53/ct respectively. Total proceeds received from the sale is $436,597 (R6,505,295).

The company noted that the diamonds would otherwise have formed part of a larger diamond tender in Antwerp scheduled to commence at the end of this month.

Commenting on the sales, DiamondCorp CEO Paul Loudon said, “The company undertakes regular diamond exports from South Africa in order that its diamonds are sorted and prepared for tender sale in Antwerp. Every tender comprises several export shipments, the process of which each time involves a four-day window when South African licenced diamantaires may bid for the production. If the reserve prices placed by DiamondCorp on the parcels are exceeded during this four-day period, then the company is obliged to sell the diamonds to the highest bids rather than exported. The company’s reserve prices must be market-related.”

“Pleasingly, the latest selling price is the highest achieved to date for run of mine Lace kimberlite diamonds and underlines the conservative nature of the $164/ct base case in the company’s resource statement and financial models,” Paul Loudon noted.

He further added that the “higher price is a reflection both of the increase in the plant bottom screen size from 1.00 mm to 1.25 mm and the recovery of a higher than forecast frequency of diamonds greater than 4 carats in size.”

The company management will be monitoring the rate of rough diamond accumulation from the first month of full production from the UK4 Block during July and determine the best date to re-schedule the next Antwerp tender.