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Lucapa’s Lulo Mine Posts Record 1Q Sales as Average Price Surges to $12K/Ct
Apr 13, 2016 8:52 AM
By Rapaport News
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RAPAPORT... Australia’s Lucapa Diamond Company said quarterly diamond
sales from its Lulo project in Angola hit a record as the average price per
carat soared after the largest diamond in the nation’s history fetched a
staggering $16 million.
Revenue in the
three months to March 31 surged to $23.1 million, which is more than double the
total sales for 2015, with the average price catapulting to $11,983 per carat
from a sale of 1,931 carats. Sales at the Lulo Diamond Project commenced in the
second quarter of last year.
The 404-carat
diamond that propped up quarterly revenue was bought for $39,580 per carat, the
highest
average price to date for a white diamond mined at Lulo. To date, the
company has sold $38.1 million worth of rough diamonds for an average price of
$3,147 per carat.
Lulo sales
underline a “strong global demand for large top-tier gems,” the company said. Special
diamonds – more than 10.8 carats – now account for 94 percent of overall
diamond revenues, highlighting the “unique nature of the Lulo diamond province
and its future potential,” it added.
Other big
stones Lucapa has produced so far include a 133.4-carat
diamond and a 68-carat
gem. The miner also announced this week it found more super-sized gems from
a trial excavation in a new area at Lulo, including a 59-carat type-I diamond
and a 33-carat, type-IIa, D-color gem.
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Tags:
Angola, Lucapa Diamond Company, Lulo, Rapaport News, Rough Diamonds, rough sales
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