By Poloko Mokhele
Gem Diamonds says the strong prices achieved during the December tender for Letŝeng Mine’s high value diamonds reflected a continued recovery of the global diamond market which was supported by strong consumer demand.
This was revealed by the company in its fourth quarter trading update report which was released on Tuesday, detailing the company’s operational and sales performance from October 1 to December 31, 2021.
“Letŝeng’s plants treated a total of 1.2 million tonnes of ore during the period of which one million tonnes were sourced from the satellite pipe and 0.2 million from the main pipe. In addition, 0.3 million tonnes of main pipe material were treated through the alluvial ventures contractor plant,” the report indicated.
The mine maintained its cash costs within expected targets with operating costs per tonne and capex under the full year 2021 guidance. During the period, Letŝeng declared a dividend of US$13.0 million resulting in a net cash flow of US$8.6 million to Gem Diamonds and a cash outflow from the (Gem Diamonds) Group for withholding taxes of US$0.5 million and payment of the government of Lesotho’ share of US$3.9 million dividend.
Commenting on the report, Gem Diamonds CEO, Clifford Elphick said “it is pleasing to report that all operational and cost metrics for 2021 were within or better than guidance and we have delivered our four year US$100 million Business Transformation target.
“During the quarter, prices achieved for Letŝeng goods averaging over US$2000 per carat were strong, reflecting the continued good demand for the mine’s production, especially for larger higher quality diamonds.”
Gem Diamonds owns seventy percent of Letŝeng mine while Lesotho government holds thirty percent. Letŝeng is famous for the production of large, exceptional white diamonds.
