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Rio Tinto's Diamond Production -15% in 3Q
Oct 19, 2014 2:25 AM
By Deena Taylor
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RAPAPORT... Rio Tinto’s diamond production fell 15 percent year on year to 3.549 million carats in the third quarter that ended on September 30, 2014.
Rio Tinto owns the Argyle mine in Australia, a 60 percent stake in the Diavik mine in Canada and a 78 percent share in the Murowa mine in Zimbabwe.
Diamond production at Argyle fell 20 percent to 2.455 million carats. Rio Tinto successfully commissioned a second crusher at the mine during the period, which drove production rates higher, offsetting lower grades, and kept carat production in line with the previous quarter.
Diamond production at Diavik rose 0.1 percent to 1.004 million carats, but declined 5 percent compared with the previous quarter as a result of lower grades and throughput after the majority of stockpiled ore was processed during the first half.
Meanwhile, production at Murowa rose 29 percent to 90,000 carats as a result of higher grades and processing rates.
During the first nine months of the year, Rio Tinto's total diamond production fell 4 percent to 11.031 million carats. Diamond production at Argyle fell 10 percent to 7.375 million carats, while production at Divaik grew 10 percent to 3.413 million carats. The company's share of production at Murowa rose 12 percent to 243,000 carats.
Rio Tinto lowered its diamond production guidance for 2014 from 16 million carats to 15 million carats, mainly as result of a maintenance shutdown at Argyle implemented to improve design modifications to both underground crushers at the mine.
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Tags:
Argyle, Deena Taylor, diamond, diamonds, Diavik, Murowa, Rio Tinto
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