First Nation Group at Loggerheads with De Beers
RAPAPORT. An Indigenous group in Canada is protesting plans by De Beers to build a new landfill at its Victor mine site, claiming the territory is of cultural significance.
The Attawapiskat are opposed to the landfill, which would be used for mine-demolition waste during the closure and rehabilitation of the site, fearing it will devastate the James Bay wetlands area, the group said Tuesday. That site has been of “critical, spiritual and subsistence importance to the Kattawapiskak Cree people for thousands of years,” it explained.
The First Nation group is also concerned the landfill could turn into another incident similar to the destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves in Australia by Rio Tinto last year. That area was a sacred Indigenous site to the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people, and was thousands of years old. The mining giant blasted it to make room for the expansion of one of its deposits.
RAPAPORT. Trans Atlantic Gem Sales (TAGS) registered proceeds of $60 million at its March tender in Dubai amid a steady market for larger rough diamonds.
The company sold just over 49,000 carats to 63 companies, with individual invoices ranging from $6,000 to several million dollars, the tender house reported last week. It offered a total of 60,000 carats of production from South Africa, Namibia and Angola with a combined value of around $65 million.
The sale featured around 150 special stones above 10 carats with TAGS seeing “a great deal of interest from the global manufacturing community” for these items, it added. “In [0.75-carat and larger] sizes, we saw continued strong demand as in previous months, but noted a marginal softening in smaller sizes” under 0.75 carats, the company explained.
Malabar Gold & Diamonds Opens 56 New Stores
RAPAPORT. India-based jewelry chain Malabar Gold & Diamonds is expanding its store network to include an additional 56 locations globally.
The company will invest $220 million over the next two years to broaden its offering, creating 1,750 new jobs, it said last week. A total of 40 news shops will open in India, while 16 will open overseas in Singapore, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“In over 25 years we have transformed from a small retail jewelry business to a global player across the verticals of gold- and diamond-jewelry retail, manufacturing and multi-retail business,” said MP Ahammed, chairman of Malabar. “Transparency and customer trust have been our growth pillars, and the new expansion will take us to the next level.”
Lucara Extends Large-Stone Supply Agreement
RAPAPORT. Lucara Diamond Corp. has added an extra two years to its supply deal with HB Antwerp, enabling it to continue selling all its rough above 10.8 carats to the Belgium-based manufacturer.
“Lucara is beginning to see the benefits of this strategy in accessing a broader marketplace and delivering regular cash flow based on final polished sales,” Lucara CEO Eira Thomas said Wednesday. “We believe these early results warrant an extension of the arrangement for at least 24 months to determine if superior pricing and market stability for our large, high-value diamonds can be sustained longer term.”
Alrosa Appoints New Head of Mining Division
RAPAPORT. Alrosa has promoted Sergey Pavlenko to head of its Udachny mining division, replacing Roman Deniskin, who had been in charge since 2019.
Pavlenko has been with Alrosa since 2000, when he started as a metalworking and repair specialist, the miner said last week. In 2010, he became supervisor of the mine’s mechanized section, and chief engineer of Udachny’s maintenance department. The company named Pavlenko as chief engineer of the entire Udachny division in 2014.
“As head of the division, Sergey Pavlenko is now facing great new opportunities,” said Alrosa CEO Sergey Ivanov. “The Udachny division has been a vital part of his life for years; he knows all aspects of its operations and has an impressive background of operational and management experience. I have no doubt that he will successfully handle the ambitious goals that the division is pursuing today.”