BHP Diamond Output Falls 24% in Fiscal Q1

Multi-resource miner BHP Billiton said on Wednesday its diamond production at Ekati had dropped 24 percent to 773,000 carats in the first quarter of fiscal 2009 from a year earlier.

Compared to the preceding quarter ending June 30, diamond production was down 11 percent, the diamond miner said.

“Production decreased compared to the June 2008 and September 2007 quarters mainly due to lower grades and a change in ore source,” BHP Billiton, which owns an 80 percent stake in Ekati, said in a statement.

“As Ekati (Canada) transitions from open pit mining to underground mining the mix of ore processed will change from time to time,” the company said, noting that Ekati had processed a greater proportion of higher value carats from Koala underground during the quarter as production continued to ramp up.

In a quarterly exploration and development report published on Wednesday, BHP said grassroots exploration continued on diamond targets in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Canada.

The company has yet to release its earnings statement for the period.