Gem Diamonds says it produced 29,010 carats at its 70%-owned Letšeng mine in Lesotho during the first quarter of 2021, an 11% jump compared with 26,110 carats produced a year earlier.
However, the company's revenue for the period eased 7% to $43.9 million from the previous year's $47.3 million.
The average price achieved in the first quarter of 2021 went up by 1% to $1,630 per carat against $1,615 per carat in the comparative period last year.
Gem said the prices achieved for Letšeng's diamonds reflected the continued improvement in market conditions.
"It is pleasing to see that carat production during the period was up [against] some 11% on the same period in 2020 and that the average price of $1,630 per carat was also slightly up on Q1 2020," said company chief executive Clifford Elphick.
"Although the production from the mining mix was not as impressive as the second half of 2020, with fewer large diamonds recovered due to the areas accessed under the mining plan, prices achieved on a like for like basis remained strong for Letšeng's high-value diamond production."
Gem ended the period with $26.9 million of cash on hand and Letšeng paid the remaining dividend of $10.0 million that was declared in 2020.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
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