Lucara Auction Nets $257 p/c, Sold $13.4M

Karowe sorting plant

(IDEX Online News) – Diamond miner Lucara sold 52,231 carats for $13.4 million at an auction concluded Monday. Among the sold diamonds is a 16.44-carat diamond that sold for $460,484 or $28,010 per carat.

Lucara's third auction of Karowe goods averaged $257 per carat (p/c), an increase from the $215 p/c achieved at its first auction held in June.

The miner expanded the pre-sale viewings, adding a viewing at the offices of Bonas-Couzyn in Antwerp to Gaborone viewing. 

CEO William Lamb said he is pleased with the results. "This is especially significant in the current depressed state of the rough diamond market.” The third auction included 741 carats withheld from the second sale.

To ensure consistency of sale parcels, Lucara decided to hold fewer sales with larger volumes over the remainder of the year. It is anticipated that two more sales of Karowe diamonds will take place in 2012 with the next sale being held in November.

The company expects production at Karowe to meet or exceed the previously published forecast for 2012.