Lucara Diamond has unearthed a 1,080.1-carat diamond from its wholly-owned Karowe Diamond Mine in Botswana.
The diamond was described as a Type IIa top white gem of high quality, recovered in the Coarse XRT unit at Karowe from direct milling of ore sourced from the M/PK(S) unit of the South Lobe.
The stone is the fourth +1,000-carat diamond recovered from the South Lobe of the AK6 kimberlite since 2015.
"Lucara is extremely pleased to be reporting the recovery of another large, high-quality gem diamond over 1,000 carats in size, representing our fourth diamond over 1,000 carats since 2015,” said company chief executive Eira Thomas.
“As we progress mining deeper in the open pit and transition to underground mining, exclusively in the South Lobe, the preponderance of large, high-value stones is increasing, consistent with the resource model and underpins the strong economic rationale for investing in the Underground expansion that will extend the mine-life out to at least 2040."
Other significant recoveries from Karowe include the 1,758-carat Sewelô (2019), a 1,174-carat diamond (2020), and the 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona (2015).
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
