Alrosa to Double Investment in Zimbabwe
April 29, 25
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa is forging closer links with Zimbabwe and says it will double its investment in its diamond exploration there.
Pavel Marynichev, CEO of the sanctioned Russian miner, visited Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa in Harare last week.
Afterwards he said: "We are ready to work in the Republic of Zimbabwe and we are ready to move forward.
"Yes, and having said that, we have to admit that the planned investments between our companies were doubled." He did not provide figures.
Alrosa first embarked on exploration projects in Zimbabwe in 2013, but was forced out in 2016 by President Robert Mugabe, who consolidated the country's diamond mining under the state-owned Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC).
Mugabe's successor Emmerson Mnangagwa came to power after Mugabe was ousted in a military coup.
He invited Alrosa back in 2019 to revive a diamond industry that has been hit by political instability, human rights abuses, corruption and economic crises.
Zimbabwe is the world's seventh biggest diamond producer with an output of 4.9m carats in 2023 and an estimated output of 5.7m for 2024. The ZCDC aims to increase that figure to 10m this year.