Aim-listed Botswana Diamonds’ associate, Vutomi, has received approval to sell 256 ct of rough diamonds recovered during a bulk sampling programme at the Thorny River project, in South Africa.
The sale of diamonds from bulk sampling will enable the further development of the project.
Trenching by Botswana Diamonds has identified a “hotspot” at Thorny River, with a thick kimberlite intersection of 4 m wide, suggesting a “kimberlite blow”.
Botswana Diamonds’ partner, SouthernEra Diamonds, has included its coarse tailings dumps generated from the mining of the Marsfontein and Klipspringer diamond mines into the same revenue sharing agreement.
The Thorny River bulk sampling programme is a joint venture between SouthernEra (40%), providing the processing; Palaeo (40%), the mining contractor; and Vutomi (20%), providing the ground.
Meanwhile, Vutomi’s application for a Section 27 mining permit over a portion of the Marsfontein farm has been accepted by the authorities.
Marsfontein is contiguous to, and an extension of, the Thorny River project. This portion of the farm is host to the rich M8 kimberlite dyke, bordering the great Marsfontein diamond mine, in situ gravels and dumps.