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Dominion Sales -35% As Average Price Drops at Ekati Mine
Nov 22, 2015 6:57 AM
By Rapaport News
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RAPAPORT... Dominion Diamond Corporation’s revenue slumped 35 percent to
$145 million year on year in the third quarter that ended October 31. In volume terms,
sales fell 31 percent to 795,000 carats and the average price slid 25 percent
to $145 per carat, the Toronto-based miner said on November 19.
While rough sales from the Ekati Diamond Mine in Canada increased 5
percent to 480,000 carats, a 41 percent drop in the average price to $184 per
carat resulted in sales dropping 38 percent to $88.2 million in value terms,
according to a company statement.
Recovery from Ekati slid 20 percent to 800,000 carats. The
Toronto-based miner processed 18 percent less ore from the mine, at 900,000
tonnes, as it is testing a slower processing rate to optimize diamond recovery.
The company said it is also planning to shift Ekati from higher to lower value
production.
The figures do not include diamonds produced and sold from
the Misery Northeast pipe, which is at the pre-commercial production stage. The
company sold an estimated 30,000 carats of these diamonds for about $1.8
million, or $60 per carat. The pipe is on track for first production by the end
of April 2016.
Revenue from the Diavik Diamond Mine, also in Canada, dropped 29 percent to
$56.8 million as the volume of rough sales plummeted 55 percent to 315,000
carats. However, the average price increased 56 percent to $180 per carat.
Processing from Diavik decreased 15 percent year on year in the three months to
September 30, while recovery fell 24 percent, the company reported in October.
Sales were affected by a cautious market environment and
drops in rough diamond prices, which it said had fallen about 8 percent this
calendar year.
Dominion owns all of the Ekati mine and 40 percent of
Diavik, with the remaining 60 percent held by Rio Tinto.
During the nine months to October 31, Dominion’s total
revenue decreased 20 percent to $542.4 million. |
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Tags:
Canada, Diavik Diamond mine, Dominion Diamond Corporation, Ekati Diamond Mine, Rapaport News
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