News
Diamond jewellery sales in India set to increase 15% - 20% on sharp rise in gold prices
Indian diamond jewellery retailers anticipate a 15% - 20% increase in sales during the 2026 festive season, driven primarily by the sharp rise in gold prices which prompts consumers to consider diamond jewellery in more affordable price range...
Yesterday
South Africa mining output falls 12.7% in August on weak PGMs, coal and iron ore
South Africa's mining output declined 12.7% year-on-year in August, according to Statistics South Africa, with platinum group metals, coal, and iron ore accounting for the largest negative contributions.
Yesterday
Aterian expands copper footprint at Azrar project in Morocco
Aterian has identified multiple copper showings and substantially expanded the known mineralisation footprint at the Amane Target of its 85%-owned Azrar Copper-Silver project in Morocco, following initial exploration fieldwork.
Yesterday
Russia’s Ministry of Natural Resources identifies region with largest platinum and palladium deposits
Russia retains second place globally in terms of platinum and palladium reserves, while the largest deposits of these metals are concentrated in Krasnoyarsk Territory, according to the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources.
Yesterday
Tharisa meets FY2026 guidance, Karo Platinum fully funded as net debt swings to $51m
Tharisa has reported full-year production in line with guidance for both platinum group metals (PGMs) and chrome concentrates, while confirming its Karo Platinum project in Zimbabwe is now fully funded following a $300 million bond issue.
13 october 2026
The Software Pirates of Surat
19 march 2021
(idexonline.com) - There's more than one way to get your diamonds scanned in Surat. Orthodox business practice is to buy a legitimate machine and license its software on a "pay as you go" basis. The alternative is to seek rough planning and inclusion mapping services elsewhere at a lower cost - using pirated software run on counterfeit machines. Diamond manufacturers in the cutting and polishing capital aren't so brazen as to actually have the technology on their premises. Instead, they send their diamonds, and very often their workers as well, to outside facilities with pools of machines to get them scanned. Sometimes they have specific machines set aside for their own use. The financial benefits are significant - using pirated software costs less than doing it legitimately - and the practice has caught on with quite a few polishers.
Global gold output to rise 5.5% in 2021 – report
18 march 2021
(mining.com) - After declining in 2019, global gold production was adversely affected by the covid-19 pandemic during 2020, while the suspension of expansion works and contractions from mines nearing closure also exacerbated the decline. Overall output in 2020 was estimated to have declined by 5.2% to 108 million ounces (moz), according to UK-based analytics company GlobalData. This year, however, total production is expected to bounce back and increase by 5.5% to 113.9moz and then grow to 124.1moz by 2024 – a 2.9% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Indonesia, Peru and the US will be the key contributors to this growth, GlobalData says. Combined production in these countries is expected to recover from an estimated 20.1moz in 2021 to 25.3moz in 2024.
Source over size
17 march 2021
(conta.cc) - For many, if not for all diamond mining companies, these smaller rough diamonds are their bread and butter. And as we have learned over the past years, a drop in prices of small rough can make or break the business model of these miners.
SA mining firms face tricky ‘anti-vaxxer’ dilemma as gears up for COVID-19 vaccination plan
16 march 2021
(miningmx.com) - South Africa’s mining sector believes it can vaccinate between 2.5 and three million people against COVID-19 infections. Using its extensive healthcare facilities, digital database, and outreach into mining-related communities there’s no reason to suppose this won’t be achieved. Already the sector has tended to out-punch the rest of the country in terms of COVID-19 management.
Ekati Eyes 5M Carats as Production Resumes
15 march 2021
(diamonds.net) - The new owners of the Ekati mine are planning annual production of 5 million carats by 2022 after the deposit spent the past 10 months on care and maintenance. Arctic Canadian Diamond Company took over the operation in December as former owner Dominion Diamond Mines filed for bankruptcy protection in April 2020. Dominion was unable to meet its repayment obligations for debts that had swollen to CAD 1.2 billion ($820 million) when rough sales froze due to Covid-19. Its 40% stake in the Diavik mine remains part of the Dominion bankruptcy proceedings. Arctic, which is made up of three of Dominion’s bondholders — DDJ Capital, Brigade Capital and Western Asset Management — assumed $70 million of Dominion’s debt and injected $85 million of working capital into Ekati. That enabled the mine to resume operations in late January 2021, with the current plan extending operations to 2028, Arctic’s interim president, Rory Moore, told Rapaport News. The full interview with Moore and an analysis about Arctic’s plans are presented in the March issue of the Rapaport Research Report.
