Gem Diamonds’ 2014 Net Profit +57% to $33 Million
March 19, 15
(IDEX Online News) – Net profit in 2014 rose 57 percent to $33 million, announced Gem Diamonds. During the year, the company’s revenue also rose, up 27 percent to $271 million.
The miner recovered 108,569 carats from the Letšeng mine in Lesotho, which sold for an average of $2,540 per carat.
In addition, the company recovered 10,167 carats during the commissioning of the Ghaghoo mine, including a 20-carat white diamond, a 17-carat white diamond and a 3-carat orange diamond.
Gem Diamonds’ CEO Clifford Elphick said 2014 was a solid year both financially and operationally for the company. “We successfully delivered on a number of key growth objectives including bringing Ghaghoo into production, significantly enhancing operational efficiencies at Letšeng and delivering a maiden dividend.”
He said that with a continued focus on cost control, the company is in a very strong position financially with cash balance of $111 million. “As we expand from a single producing mine to two producing mines, with the ramp up of production at Ghaghoo, we will start to see a significant shift in production figures,” he said.