Mining Expected to Start Soon at Zimbabwe Project

Diamond mining is expected to start soon at Murowa in Zimbabwe after Rio Tinto approved a loan package of $13.5 million for the project, according to Zimbabwean media reports.

The financial injection is awaiting approval from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

Officials from Rio Tinto Zimbabwe and majority shareholder Rio Tinto Plc are close to making a final investment decision to proceed with the initial phase of development of the Murowa project.

The venture would be the largest diamond-mining project in the country, with reserves amounting to about 23.1 million tons of diamond ore.

Apart from Murowa, the country’s only other known diamond deposits are at Beitbridge's River Ranch Mine, owned by a group of Zimbabwean businesspeople.