Burgundy to Complete Purchase of Canada's First Diamond Mine
June 13, 23
(IDEX Online) - The sale of Ekati, Canada's first diamond mine, to Australia-based Burgundy is due to be completed by 30 June.
It will be the second time the mine has changed hands in under two-and-a-half years.
Arctic Canadian Diamond Company acquired the deposit, 125 miles south of the Arctic Circle, in February 2021 after the previous owners, Dominion Diamonds, filed for insolvency.
Ekati opened in 1998,seven years after diamond-bearing kimberlites were discovered.
Burgundy, which is also reviving the mothballed Ellendale mine, Western Australia, is paying $136m. The Arctic Diamond name will be retained.
In an update prior to the sale Arctic Diamond said it was advancing plans to flood the existing open pit and deploy a remote-controlled underwater crawler.
It would be the first use of such technology to retrieve diamonds.
Pic courtesy Arctic Canadian Diamond Company