Dominion Diamond's 4Q Sales +3%

Ekati Mine Production +70%

Feb 24, 2015 2:08 AM By Avi Krawitz

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RAPAPORT... Dominion Diamond Corp. reported that its total sales rose 3 percent year on year to $240.6 million in the fourth quarter that ended January 31, 2015. However, the company noted that sales were below expectations since diamond prices softened during the period.

The company contended that despite "good Christmas sales" in the U.S., weakness in rough and polished prices toward the end of the year, primarily caused by a tightening of available bank financing to the cutting and polishing industry, resulted in lower rough diamond sales.

The company sold 897,000 carats from the Ekati mine – on a 100 percent ownership basis -- for $159.1 million, or $177.40 per carat. Dominion’s 40 percent share of production from the Diavik mine resulted in the sale of 778,000 carats for $81.5 million, or $104.80 per carat. Rio Tinto owns the remaining 60 percent of Diavik.

Sales did not include $11.5 million worth of sales from the Misery satellite and Misery northeast pipes that yielded diamonds from processing material during the pre-commercial production period, the company noted.

Fourth-quarter production at Ekati rose 70 percent to 821,000 carats, while Dominion’s Diavik production fell 28 percent to 628,000 carats. Dominion’s total production increased 7 percent to 1.449 million carats during the period.

During the full fiscal year, total production grew 31 percent to 5.98 million carats. Ekati’s production rose 91 percent to 3.158 million carats as the mine had a lower contribution to Dominion’s business in the previous year as the company bought Ekati midway through fiscal 2014. Dominion’s Diavik production declined 3 percent to 2.822 million carats.

Group sales grew 22 percent to $915.7 million for the year, excluding $42.5 million worth of sales generated from diamonds processed from the Misery pipes.

Dominion is expected to publish its full-fourth-quarter and year-end financial results in late March or early April.

Tags: Avi Krawitz, diamonds, Diavik, Dominion Diamond Corp, ekati, Rapaport