Firestone recovers 835 000 ct in first full year of production

28th September 2018

By: Marleny Arnoldi

Deputy Editor Online

     

Font size: - +

Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds has narrowed its loss a share to about $0.03 for the financial year ended June 30, compared with the loss a share of $0.37 in the prior comparable period.

In the first full year of production at its Liqhobong mine, in Lesotho, the company’s loss decreased by 91% to $14.2-million, while its revenue increased by 125% to $62-million.

Firestone recovered 835 832 ct of diamonds in the year under review, compared with the 365 891 ct recovered during the prior year. Grade increased to 22 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht), compared with 18.6 cpht in the prior comparable period.

Firestone managed to decrease its operating costs to $11.62/t treated, compared with $12.26/t treated in the prior comparable period.

The company’s largest diamond recovered to date was a 134 ct gem-quality light yellow diamond and the most valuable diamond recovered, as measured by dollar per carat, was a fancy pink diamond, which realised $112 781/ct.

CEO Paul Bosma said in a statement on Friday that the 2018 financial year had been an eventful one, marking the company’s first full year as a diamond producer at Liqhobong.

“Having concluded a $25-million fundraising at the end of December 2017 and restructured our Absa debt facility, we entered the second half of the financial year on a much stronger financial footing. 

“We had an exceptional final quarter from an operational perspective and this trend has continued into the 2019 financial year. We continue to evaluate our life-of-mine plan to assess the viability of an extension,” he added.

From a market perspective, Firestone had seen further evidence of subdued pricing for smaller, lower-quality goods at the most recent diamond sales, putting pressure on overall dollar per carat.

However, the demand for larger, better-quality stones remained strong.

The overall supply-demand dynamics in the natural diamond market remained favourable in the short to medium term with no new sources of supply on the horizon, and the major producers carrying minimal stock and operating close to full capacity.

This bodes well for Liqhobong, which is only just starting its journey, the company stated.

Edited by Chanel de Bruyn
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online

Comments

The content you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.

If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.

If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.

For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION