Lucara Raises $24.7 Million at Exceptional Stone Tender

(IDEX Online News) – Lucara Diamond Corp. raised $24.7 million at its second Exceptional Stone Tender. The special tender of Karowe diamonds consisted of 16 single stone lots, with an average sale price of $24,026 per carat for a total of 1,028 carats.  

The highest value stone was a 135.4-carat diamond, which sold for $6.37 million with three other diamonds selling for more than $2.5 million each.

"This sale demonstrates that the market remains very strong for large and exceptional diamonds adding significantly to the value of Karowe Mine, which continues to outperform expectations,” said Lucara president and CEO William Lamb. “We could not be happier with the result.”

Lucara will hold one regular tender during the third quarter where 80,000 carats will be on sale, including more than 30 single stones larger than 10.8 carats.

The company’s two key assets are the Karowe Mine in Botswana and the Mothae Project in Lesotho, while the 100 percent-owned Karowe Mine is in production. The 75 percent-owned Mothae Project has completed its trial mining program.