Firestone Diamonds, which has a 75% stake in the Liqhobong mine, in Lesotho, has revised its production guidance for the fiscal year 2020 due to power disruption and a subsequent review of the mine plan. The company said it is now expecting diamond recoveries of between 720 000 and 750 000 carats from the previous’ target of between 820 000 and 870 000 carats.
"The unexpected power disruption had a devastating impact on production and revenue generation,” said Firestone chief executive Paul Bosma.
“…due to the production setback and continued lacklustre market conditions, the board has decided that it is imperative that it does all it can to reduce costs in order to survive the prolonged downturn.”
This includes delisting from London’s AIM and reducing the size of the board.
Meanwhile, Firestone said its sales volumes decreased by 21% during the second quarter of the fiscal year due to the power disruption to 132 885 carats compared to 168 612 carats sold in the previous quarter.
However, average diamond values of $73 per carat were higher than $63 per carat in the previous quarter due to a number of larger and better-quality diamonds that were recovered and sold including one plus 100 carat diamond and two plus 90 carat diamonds.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
