Anglo American nears De Beers spinoff as Botswana weighs stake rise – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – February 7, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

Anglo American (LON: AAL) is moving closer to spinning off its diamond unit, De Beers, after the government of Botswana confirmed interest in increasing its stake in the world’s leading diamond producer by value.

De Beers has been on the chopping block since May 2024, when Anglo announced plans to either sell the unit or launch an initial public offering (IPO). This decision came as part of a reorganization initiated after Anglo fended off a failed £39 billion ($49 billion) takeover bid by Australian rival BHP.

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De Beers seals sales and mining contract with Botswana – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – February 3, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

De Beers, the world’s leading diamond producer by value, has concluded negotiations with the Botswana government on a new sales agreement and the extension of mining licenses for their joint venture, Debswana, until 2054.

The finalized agreement, the Anglo American (LON: AAL) unit said on Monday, follows discussions aimed at setting a new framework for the sale of rough diamond production from Debswana, a 50:50 partnership between De Beers and Botswana. The deal also secures the renewal of Debswana’s mining licenses, which were previously set to expire in 2029.

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De Beers Kept Prices Steady. Now What? – by Joshua Freedman (Rapaport Magazine – January 27, 2025)

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The miner faces competing pressures as the focus shifts to negotiations with Botswana.

The news at last week’s De Beers sight was what soccer fans might call “off the pitch.” The sale itself was uneventful. The miner left rough prices unchanged at the first cycle of the year after December’s sharp reductions. It allowed 20% buybacks for all goods — a mechanism that lets sightholders sell the least profitable stones back to the company. Demand was weak, with sales value expected to be low.

But the question on sightholders’ lips was what would happen next. One of the main reasons for the low sales was De Beers’ high prices. The miner’s rough remains significantly more expensive than the tender and auction market.

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Signet, Synthetics, and a Complex Holiday Season – by Joshua Freedman (Rapaport Magazine – January 20, 2025)

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Poor results at the US’s largest diamond retailer reflected a fragmented and changing market rather than a crisis in consumer demand.

Signet Jewelers’ disappointing holiday results had a dampening effect on the industry’s mood. Same-store sales at the US’s largest diamond retailer fell 2% for the 10 weeks that ended January 11. The company slashed its guidance for the fiscal fourth quarter. Its share price fell 22% in one day.

What the results indicated, however, was not so much sluggish consumer demand as a complex US jewelry market that has forced retailers to strategize carefully. The key issue for Signet was product range, the jeweler’s new CEO, J.K. Symancyk, said at the ICR Conference 2025 on Tuesday, a few hours after the sales announcement.

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Invisible engravings, ethical diamonds: the technology that tracks stones from mine to market (Euro News – January 2025)

https://www.euronews.com/

International laws prohibit the trade of diamonds from countries in conflict, but for now, it is impossible to be certain of the origin of the precious stones. A Polish laboratory has found the solution.

Could the diamond in your engagement ring come from a country in conflict, like Russia? Not legally, and there is now a technology developed by a European project in Poland that could prevent it from happening illegally in the future.

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Canadian Mining Hall of Fame adds Boyd, Giustra, MacLean, Sheahan – by Colin McClelland (Nothern Miner – January 13, 2025)

https://www.northernminer.com/

Sean Boyd, the chair of Agnico Eagle Mines recalled when the company’s performance prompted CNN’s Mad Money host Jim Cramer to eat a crow sandwich on air. Boyd’s mother was watching. “That man wasn’t very nice to you today,” she said.

Cramer was recanting his conviction after only a poor quarter. Boyd never wavered in his commitment and actually booked the TV appearance to avoid accusations of ducking out when times were tough. “The producer said ‘Well, thanks for coming on, at least you got to give your side of the story,’” Boyd recounted. “And I said, ‘Remember: I called you,’ and he said, ‘That’s why you’re coming on again.’”

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Korean market embraces lab-grown diamonds – by Back Byung-yeul (Korea Times – January 13, 2025)

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/

The global diamond market is undergoing a transformative shift, with lab-grown diamonds emerging as a formidable force. This shift is particularly evident in Korea, where these ethically sourced and cost-effective gems are quickly gaining popularity, carving out a niche in the wedding and anniversary jewelry sectors, according to Iris Arnold, CEO and founder of the U.K.-based jewelry company Novita Diamonds.

“Lab-grown diamonds are undoubtedly a game changer in the jewelry industry. They are revolutionizing the market by making diamonds more accessible and aligning with consumer values around sustainability and ethics,” Arnolds told The Korea Times in a recent written interview.

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Are lab-grown diamonds too bling for their own good? – by Staff (Northern Miner – January 7, 2025)

Global mining news

Diamonds grown in the lab are shining brighter than natural stones by grabbing market share, but their kryptonite could be the low prices and large carats indicating they really are in a different category, analysts and companies surveyed by The Wall Street. Journal say.

Post-pandemic demand for diamonds surged in 2021-2022, but then prices dropped by 8% compared with the first quarter of 2020 and lab-grown diamond (LGD) prices plunged by three quarters, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing industry analyst Paul Zimnisky.

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The Jewelry District, Episode 137: Guest Ian Smillie – by Kathy Passero (JCK Online – December 18, 2024)

JCK Online

JCK editor-in-chief Victoria Gomelsky and news director Rob Bates talk with human rights activist and author Ian Smillie, one of the architects of the Kimberley Process. Ian’s unlikely career began when he volunteered to teach high school in Sierra Leone more than 50 years ago and has led him to become a leading advocate for ending the “blood diamond” trade.

In this episode, Ian discusses his quest to improve life for artisanal miners, the threats they face from the rise of lab-grown stones, and his new memoir about a life dedicated to combatting global poverty. Victoria and Rob welcome Ian Smillie, a Canadian human rights activist who was instrumental in the campaign against blood diamonds.

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Obituary: Diamond hunter Chris Jennings played a key role in finding Diavik deposit in Northwest Territories – by Matthew Hart (Globe and Mail – December 12, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

On Nov. 12, 1991, the Australian minerals giant BHP issued a spare, eight-sentence press release that dropped like a bomb on Canadian mining. At a tiny lake 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife, the company and its Canadian partners had discovered microdiamonds.

Canada would become a major diamond producer, but at the time the news stunned the mining community. Diamonds in the Arctic? A group of men and women who had spent their lives ransacking Canada for minerals gathered for a late-night meeting in Toronto as they tried to understand the news.

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The Kimberley Process Has Failed at Its One Job. Let It Do Something Else. – by Rob Bates (JCK Online.com – December 5, 2024)

JCK Online

In mid-November, the Kimberley Process (KP) lifted its embargo against the Central African Republic (CAR); there’s a good backgrounder here. In this special guest editorial, Brad Brooks-Rubin — who has worked for the U.S. government, industry associations, and a nongovernmental organization (NGO) — gives his view on what this means for the certification scheme’s future.

Recently I walked into a jewelry store and asked about blood diamonds. The salesperson, leaning on their training, talked to me about the Kimberley Process certification scheme. Per the standard industry talking points, I was told that 99% of diamonds are conflict-free and that the KP helps support local development in diamond-mining countries.

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The History Of The Argyle Pink Diamond Mines – by Prue Bell (Paul Bram.com – September 3, 2021)

https://paulbram.com.au/

Pink Diamonds are amongst the rarest precious items on earth. That is why they are the most collectible stones right now. To own a pink diamond is to own a piece of Australian and world history.

“Buying a Pink Diamond is like buying a Pablo Picasso while he was alive… In another decade, the Argyle Pink Diamond will emerge as the new Faberge egg, the thing myths are made of. The value of rarity is the most priceless factor” – THE AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS REVIEW.90% of the world’s pink diamonds have been discovered in the mines of North Western Australia in the Argyle diamond mines. “The Argyle pink diamond story has enthralled throughout the years following the remarkable discovery of the Argyle mine in 1979.

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De Beers Capitulates on Diamond Strategy With Big Price Cuts – by Thomas Biesheuvel (Bloomberg News – December 02, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — De Beers has cut diamond prices by more than 10% across the board as the world’s biggest producer abandons attempts to put a floor under the slumping market.

The diamond industry has been struck by one of its deepest and most prolonged slumps in decades. What started as a post-pandemic slowdown has spiraled as inflation hit customer purchases, before a collapse in China’s luxury market further eroded demand. Man-made diamonds have also continued to undermine prices.

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Interview: Why diamonds may be a computer’s best friend – by David Szondy (New Atlas – November 30, 2024)

https://newatlas.com/

We recently sat down with Adam Khan of Diamond Quanta – the company that wants to replace the silicon chip with ones made from diamond. We discussed the reason for this glittering idea, the challenges it presents, and the implications of the technology.

The past half century has seen a fantastic evolution in electronics and computers thanks to the silicon chip. In line with Moore’s Law, the number of transistors on a single chip doubled roughly every two years with a commensurate rise in computer power and drop in prices. The result is our modern age of handheld supercomputers, increasingly common AI, the internet, and all the other things that make those of us who remember punch cards feel very old.

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Botswana to Set Up G7 Verification Node for Diamonds – by Joshua Freedman (Papaport Magazine – November 27, 2024)

https://rapaport.com/

Botswana will establish a certification point for rough diamonds entering Group of Seven (G7) countries next year, authorities announced Wednesday, with discussions underway for additional nodes in Namibia and Angola.

The development follows widespread opposition to a plan for Antwerp to be a “single node” through which all rough destined for G7 markets would pass to ensure it is not subject to Russian sanctions.

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