Gaborone – Lucara Diamond Corp. (“Lucara” or the “Company”) has announced the recovery of an exceptional 1 305.4 carat diamond from its 100%-owned Karowe Diamond Mine (“Karowe” or the “Karowe Mine”) located in Botswana.
The stone is the tenth diamond in excess of 1 000 carats recovered by the Company since operations commenced, further reinforcing Karowe’s stand-alone position as the world’s most prolific source of exceptionally large, high-value diamonds.
The diamond was recovered by the Mega Diamond Recovery (“MDR”) X-ray Transmission (“XRT”) machines, which have been instrumental in preserving and recovering some of the world’s largest gem-quality diamonds.
The recently recovered stone is categorised as white and is unbroken.
The stone measures 79.9mm x 34.1mm x 51.9mm in size.
The stone was recovered while processing a blend of open pit material and previously mined, unprocessed stockpiled ore.
As a result, the Company cannot conclusively determine whether the diamond originated from current open pit mining or from run-of-mine stockpiled material.
Since commencing production, Karowe has established an unmatched record for the recovery of large, high-quality diamonds, including the 1,109 carat Lesedi La Rona, the 1 094 carat Seriti, the 1 080 carat Eva Star, and the 2,488 carat Motswedi, the largest diamond discovered in more than a century.
William Lamb, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The recovery of our tenth diamond exceeding 1,000 carats is another extraordinary milestone for Karowe and further demonstrates the singular nature of this world-class orebody.
“No diamond mine in history has consistently produced diamonds of this magnitude, and Karowe continues to set itself apart on the global stage.
“While we cannot determine with certainty whether this diamond originated from current pit production or previously stockpiled material, its recovery is another powerful reminder of the unique diamond population hosted within the Karowe orebody.
“Recoveries of this nature reinforce our confidence in the exceptional value potential of the resource and the continued development of the Karowe Underground Project.”
