JOHANNESBURG - Lucara Diamond Corp said it had recovered an unbroken 549 carat white stone from its 100 percent owned Karowe mine in Botswana.
In a statement dated Wednesday, Lucara said the diamond was recovered from direct milling of ore sourced from the EM/PK(S) unit of the South Lobe.
This follows the recent recovery of a gem quality 176 carat stone from the same ore block.
"The EM/PK(S) continues to produce large gem quality diamonds in line with expectations and forms an important economic driver for the potential underground mine at Karowe," the company said.
"The EM/PK(S) has also delivered other high value diamonds including the 1,758 carat Sewelô, the 1,109 carat Lesedi La Rona, and the 813 carat Constellation diamond."
The 549 carat stone was recovered in the Mega Diamond Recovery (MDR) XRT circuit that allows for diamond recovery post primary crushing and prior to milling. It is the second diamond recovered from the MDR which was commissioned in 2017.
So far this year, Karowe has produced six diamonds greater than 100 carats. The company said it would make a decision on the sale of the 176 and 549 carat stones in due course.
“Lucara is extremely pleased to be starting off 2020 with the recovery of two, large, high quality diamonds that builds on the positive momentum generated following the completion of a strong 4th quarter sale in December and the announcement of our ground breaking partnership with Louis Vuitton on the Sewelô in January," chief executive Eira Thomas said.
"The unbroken 549 carat diamond is the fourth largest diamond recovered at Karowe and the first large gem to be recovered through the MDR. We look forward to continued success at Karowe and an exciting 2020.”