Africa-Press – Lesotho. Letšeng Diamonds has discovered a 442 carat white type II gem diamond on August 19. These developments were unveiled by the Gem Diamonds on their website.
“The recovery of this remarkable 442 carat diamond, one of the world’s largest gem quality
diamonds to be recovered this year, is a further confirmation of the calibre of the Letšeng mine and its ability to consistently produce large, high quality
diamonds. It is also a fitting testament to the dedication of the employees in the Group to have recovered such an extraordinary diamond, whilst at the same
time maintaining strict adherence to health and safety precautions during the global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. A portion of the proceeds from the sale
of this diamond will be used to fund a special community project, as agreed with our partners the Government of Lesotho,” notes Gem Diamonds Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Clifford Elphick.
For his part, Letšeng Diamonds Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kelebone Leisanyane said the mine “is grateful to the Government of Lesotho for showing confidence in the mining
industry during these difficult times of the pandemic and for having designated mining as an essential service in an effort to keep the wheels of the economy
rolling. ” He also highlighted that “the recovery of this remarkable 442-carat diamond, one of the world’s largest gem quality diamonds to be recovered this year, will
contribute immensely to the fiscus in the form of taxes, royalties and dividends. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this diamond will also be used to fund a special
community project, as agreed with the Government of Lesotho in the new mining lease agreement. It is also important to note that Letšeng Diamonds will continue to maintain strict adherence to
health and safety precautions during the global COVID-19 pandemic. ” The mine also announced that the 442 carat precious stone comes after the discovery of 163
carat yellow type I in June, 60 carat type I light yellow, 87 carat type II D-color and the 23 carat type II D-colour white diamonds earlier in April.
Letšeng Diamonds usually attracts international spotlight for unearthing some of the biggest kimberlite stones in the world. Some of the celebrated discoveries were 603
carat Lesotho promise in 2006, 493 carat in 2007 named Letšeng Legacy and 2011’s 550 carat named Letšeng Star. The Letšeng-la-Terae based mine dug up the
910 carat D- color diamond named Lesotho Legend which was sold for $40 million
in 2018. Last year, the government renewed the Gem Diamonds mining lease by 10 years and has increased the diamonds sales rates from 8 percent to 10 percent.
Gem Diamonds is the United Kingdom based company with Sales and Marketing operations based in Belgium and owns Letšeng Diamonds. Gem Diamonds is the majority shareholder with 70 percent stake while the government of Lesotho owns 30 percent.
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