De Beers backs Desmond
MOUNTAIN Province Diamonds (MPD), an exploration company backed by financier Dermot Desmond, has been informed that De Beers Canada Exploration, a unit of the South African diamond mining giant, will stump up C$38.5m (€25.8m) to advance development of their joint exploration of diamond deposits in Canada, writes Graham Walsh.
De Beers' decision comes after seven years of work culminating in an C$25m, 18-month pre-feasibility study into the Gahcho Kue project. The new funds will be used to start the environmental assessment and permitting process in the joint venture's AK mining leases, situated in the Northwest Territories of Canada.
"It will take up to two years to get the various permits started to open a mine," said Jan Vandersande, president and chief executive of MPD, noting that Desmond's Bottin Investments has a 28% stake in the company, while Harry Dobson, the Scottish mining magnate has a smaller holding. Dobson is a director of the company.
De Beers owns 51% of the project and MPD has a 44% stake. However, De Beers has the right to earn up to a 60% interest in the 250,000-acre prospect by taking it to commercial production.
De Beers, which controls about 60% of the world's diamond business, is bullish about prospects for the industry, predicting demand will be driven by an emerging Chinese middle-class.
AI
