De Beers sees great geological potential in Angola concession sites
De Beers says that early data indicate that their two concession sites in the Angolan provinces of Lunda Norte and Lunda Sul have great geological potential.
Group spokesperson David Johnson told Rough&Polished's Mathew Nyaungwa in an exclusive interview that they are looking forward to commencing fieldwork to investigate this further through their joint venture partnership with the state-owned Endiama.
Fieldwork will primarily focus in airborne surveys while also preparing for the discovery drilling process.
Johnson said the that that De Beers will initially have a 90% share in the JV, with Endiama holding the remaining 10%, with the potential for this to increase to 20% over time in line with certain preconditions.
The diamond group signed mineral investment contracts with the Angolan government last year for a term of 35 years.
Johnson said De Beers considers Angola to be one of the most prospective and underexplored countries in the world for diamonds.
Meanwhile, De Beers said the Tracr blockchain platform is now open to the wider diamond industry, with Brilliant Earth joining GIA and GSI as leading third-party companies that have joined the platform.
Below are excerpts from the interview.
How far have you gone with preparations for field activities in Angola?
We have made very good progress in planning and operational readiness activities and are looking forward to commencing field activities in the near future.
What field activities are you planning to do?
We will initially focus on airborne surveys, while we prepare for the discovery drilling processes that will follow the surveys.
How economical is your licence area?
We consider Angola to be among the most prospective and underexplored countries in the world for diamonds. Based on preliminary datasets, we believe that there is promising geological potential in our two concession areas, and we look forward to commencing field work to explore this further. Our Mineral Investment Contracts cover a period of 35 years so we are hopeful of a long and fruitful partnership with Angola, and have been encouraged by the continued progress and reforms that have been made within Angola’s diamond sector to foster an investment-friendly environment. We are excited to have the opportunity to work with Angola to build a thriving diamond sector that delivers meaningful socioeconomic benefits to Angola’s citizens.
What is your stake in the JV?
De Beers Group will initially have a 90% share, with Endiama holding the remaining 10%, with the potential for this to increase to 20% over time in line with certain preconditions.
What kind of progress have you made with your Tracr blockchain platform since its inception?
Tracr, our innovative blockchain-based diamond provenance and traceability platform, has grown rapidly in scale, with more than half of our global rough diamond production by value now being registered on the platform. We were pleased to announce at the JCK Las Vegas show that Tracr is now open to the wider diamond industry, with Brilliant Earth joining GIA and GSI as leading third-party businesses that have joined the platform. We look forward to welcoming additional industry participants in the near future, as more industry leaders seek a secure, inclusive, and scaled diamond provenance and traceability platform.
We also now have over 1,000,000 rough diamonds registered on the platform and over 100,000 polished diamonds at retail that are registered on Tracr. Additionally, we have recently had the first ever Tracr registered diamond receive a GIA certificate.
De Beers noted that more than half of its global rough diamond production by value is now being registered on Tracr. When do you expect to cover the entire production?
We are making very good progress with registering our production on Tracr and are focused on continuing to develop the platform at scale. Tracr is currently focused on registering rough diamonds above a certain minimum size, but we are working at pace on expanding the range of sizes that can be registered on the platform.
How is the Tracr blockchain platform helping the group?
Provenance assurance is an ever-increasing priority for a range of industry stakeholders, not least end-clients. Tracr is instrumental in providing this source assurance for De Beers diamonds and we have recently launched an improved Tracr “Diamond Experience” which provides retailers with a Tracr Diamond ID containing information relating to a registered diamond’s provenance, craftsmanship and legacy.
These data will also be the backbone for our Origin suite of services from the De Beers Institute of Diamonds. These services take provenance a step further by bringing to life the origin story of a diamond and celebrating what makes each one unique, precious, and personal to the individual who wears it, connecting more people to the remarkable stories of natural diamonds.
Do you have plans to allow other players in the diamond mining industry to use your Tracr blockchain platform?
The latest JCK show marked our announcement that Tracr is now open to the wider diamond industry, with Brilliant Earth being named the most recent industry participant to join the platform, following GIA and GSI. We recognise the rapidly increasing importance of provenance assurance and the need for a secure, inclusive, scaled, and industry-wide diamond provenance and traceability platform. We are excited to make Tracr accessible to all diamond businesses that meet the criteria and look forward to welcoming new participants in the near future.
What are you doing to increase the number of mining sites participating in GemFair in Sierra Leone?
Last year, GemFair expand its footprint to include more artisanal diamond miners in Sierra Leone, with the programme now having more than 260 participating sites. GemFair is focused on expanding the impact and making it even more inclusive by allowing mine sites at differing stages of their continuous improvement journeys to participate in the programme and benefit from GemFair’s offer of fair value for their diamonds. Those in the earlier stages of their journeys will be able to work with GemFair to progressively enhance standards through training and support. GemFair aims to add between 40 and 50 artisanal mine sites to the programme every year.
Will De Beers introduce the programme outside of Sierra Leone?
GemFair’s current focus is on Sierra Leone where we are gaining significant lessons regarding how to best support the formalisation of the artisanal mining sector through our fair value approach. Although GemFair has no immediate plans to expand the programme beyond Sierra Leone, we are working to design a scalable programme in the hope that it can be expanded further in the future. GemFair has also made the documentation of the GemFair Responsible ASM Assurance Programme publicly available on its website, and any other stakeholders who are interested in sourcing from the ASM sector are welcome to use it.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
