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LONDON (Alliance News) - Gem Diamonds Ltd on Thursday said production grew during the first quarter of 2018 as the average price of diamonds also increased.
The diamond mining company said it sold diamonds an average price of USD3,276 per carat in the three months to the end of March, up 48% from USD2,217 per carat in the first quarter of 2017.
A total of two tenders were held in the period, with 32,412 carats sold for a total of USD106.2 million, up 38% from 23,428 carats sold in the first quarter of the prior year.
Gem Diamonds highlighted the 66.27 carat white diamond it sold, which achieved the highest price of USD56,028 per carat.
The company recovered a total of 33,526 carats at a grade of 2.16 carats per hundred tonnes, up 32% from 25,479 carats at a grade of 1.53 carats per hundred tonnes recovered in the first quarter of 2017.
Seven diamonds recovered were greater than 100 carats, with a further 910.0 carat diamond recovered in mid-January. This was the second largest gem quality diamond recovered in the past century and the largest diamond recovered to date at the Letseng mine. It was sold for USD40.0 million in mid-March.
Gem Diamonds generated revenue of USD70.7 million for the first quarter, including 16 diamonds for over USD1.0 million each.
Production came solely from the Letseng mine in Lesotho, southern Africa, where the company treated a total of 1.3 million tonnes of ore during the period, 59% of which was sourced from the main pipe, and 41% from the satellite pipe.
"We are delighted with the outcome of the sale of the Lesotho Legend, which demonstrates the exceptional quality of the diamond itself, as well as reaffirming the unique quality of Letseng's diamond production," said Chief Executive Clifford Elphick.
"It is also pleasing to see the significant progress that has been made in the business transformation initiatives."
Shares in Gem Diamonds were trading 0.6% lower at 95.57 pence per share on Thursday.
