Petra Plans August Tender for Kono Diamonds
June 19, 08
Petra Diamonds has recovered 12,132 diamonds weighing a total of 1,049 carats in trial mining operations from its Kono project in Sierra Leone. A tender, the first from the project, is scheduled for August and will provide an indication of the average value per carat for the Kono production.
Petra notes that the exploration and trial mining operations at Kono are “progressing well.” Two shafts, Pol-K and Bardu, are being developed, from which the 12,132 diamonds have been recovered.
The tender will include approximately 800 carats from the Pol-K shaft. A second tender, scheduled for October 2008, will comprise diamonds from the first Pol-K trial stope.
As diamond production from the trial mining stopes increases over the coming months, revenues from diamond sales are expected to generate regular income to offset against total development expenditure, Petra said in a release.
Petra CEO Johan Dippenaar said, “Trial mining operations at the Kono project continue to deliver encouraging results, including the increases in grade now being achieved…as diamond production from the trial mining increases over the coming months, we will also be able to offset total project expenditure against revenues generated by regular diamond sales.”
The Kono project is a joint venture between Petra (51 percent), the operator, and Stellar Diamonds Limited (49 percent), a 63.2 percent owned subsidiary of Mano River Resources Inc.