Petra Diamonds’ adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) eased 42% to $66 million in the financial year 2024 compared to the previous year’s $113 million, representing an adjusted EBITDA margin of 18% on the back of low rough diamond prices.
It said adjusted profit from mining activities decreased to $73 million during the period under review from $123 million, a year earlier.
Higher revenues partially offset the impact of increased adjusted mining and processing costs, particularly diamond inventory movements.
Petra's full-year revenue rose 13% to $367 million compared to $325 million in the financial year 2023.
This included revenue from profit share agreements of $1 million.
It said the average realised price in the financial year 2024 was $116 per carat, a decline of 17% from $139 per carat in the financial year 2023, mainly due to a 12.4% decline in like-for-like prices, with the balance attributed to product mix movements.
Meanwhile, the miner said it recorded an adjusted net loss of $46 million compared to $ 2 million in the financial year 2023.
“In [financial year] 2024, Petra demonstrated its agility in responding to a weaker pricing environment by building greater business resilience,” said Petra chief executive Richard Duffy.
“…we acknowledge the difficult market conditions through [financial year] 2024 and believe that prices will stabilise through to the end of the calendar year 2024, with some improvement expected in the calendar year 2025.”
He said ongoing discipline by producers is expected to assist in rebalancing inventory across the pipeline.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief, Rough&Polished
