MiningMX
cullinanlatest news & developments
Finsch Mine

Petra to sell Finsch after failing to save diamond mine

PETRA Diamonds is to close Finsch mine in South Africa’s Northern Cape after business rescue practitioners found there was no way to save the business. As part of a five-point…

Petra Diamonds secures R300m loan amid Finsch rescue

PETRA Diamonds said it had secured R300m from a senior lender for working capital while it finalised business rescue for its currently suspended Finsch mine. Commenting in the…

De Beers: Venetia diamond mine

Why De Beers opted to shut Venetia diamond mine

DE Beers is preparing to shutter South Africa’s largest diamond mine for two years, threatening thousands of jobs and removing roughly two-fifths of the country’s diamond…

Finsch Mine

Petra Diamonds puts Finsch mine into business rescue

THE continuing grim conditions in the global diamond business have claimed another South African victim in the form of Petra Diamond’s Finsch mine in the Northern Cape which is…

A crisis forever? How diamond miners are digging in

THE impending liquidation of Ekapa Mining following a deadly mudslide last month brings the curtain down on roughly 150 years of diamond mining in Kimberley, where the junior…

Petra Diamonds warns rand strength a “major headwind”

PETRA Diamonds continues to leak cash as “subdued” market prices were made worse by a strengthening of the rand against the dollar – identified by the miner as a fresh headwind.…

Petra Diamonds survives after securing deal with lenders

PETRA Diamonds on Friday announced it had agreed with noteholders and lenders to refinance the company – an emergency measure that will also involve a $25m rights issue. Shares…

Diamond prices may recover in nick of time for stricken Petra

PRICES for high-value diamonds have increased 10% this year, a promising development for miners of the precious stones who have been under the cosh since at least 2022 amid poor…

Petra Diamonds Letlapa Tala Collection

Petra Diamonds abandons ‘regular tender cycles’

PETRA Diamonds has abandoned regular diamond tenders in favour of opportunistic sales as the market for unpolished goods continues to struggle. Commenting in a sales update for…

Lucapa’s Merlin project

Lucapa Diamonds forced into administration as cash dwindles

LUCAPA Diamond’s current management has succumbed to years of poor diamond prices announcing on Friday administrators had been appointed to save the company. KordaMentha…

On the edge: Petra’s Cullinan mine

Petra Diamonds hits all-time low as cash burn continues

PETRA Diamonds is to begin discussions with financiers on refinancing a $273m bond that matures in March next year amid scepticism that the company will survive the event. The…

US tariffs force diamond sales delays in further financial blow to Petra Diamonds

Petra Diamonds has postponed the sale of about 200,000 carats of diamonds produced from its Cullinan mine near Pretoria because of the “considerable diamond market uncertainty…

Lucara terminates contract of Karowe project manager

LUCARA Diamond Corp. said on Monday it would take a hands-on approach to the completion of the $684.3m Karowe underground project, the costs of which have spiralled out of…

Former Petra Diamonds CEO, Richard Duffy

Petra Diamonds CEO Richard Duffy resigns amid debt crunch

PETRA Diamonds today announced the resignation of its CEO Richard Duffy ending nearly six – largely difficult – years at the company blighted by poor trading conditions which has…

Guards stand next to the 1109-carat rough Lesedi La Rona diamond at Sotheby’s in New York in 2016. It was at that time the biggest rough diamond discovered in more than a century. The diamond, which was nearly the size of a tennis ball at 66.4 x 55 x 42 mm and estimated to be about 2.5 billion to 3 billion years old, was eventually sold to jeweller Graff for $53m after failing to meet the Sotheby’s reserve price.  (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Museums join queue for Lucara’s latest giant diamond

LESEDI La Rona, the 1,109 carat diamond recovered from Karowe’s south lobe open pit by operator Lucara Diamond Corp. in 2015, astonished the world. At the time it was the world’s…

Former Petra Diamonds CEO, Richard Duffy

Petra won’t make “silly decisions” in new cost cutting round

PETRA Diamonds would not make “silly decisions” regarding a new cost cutting programme warning of the “fatigue” on labour where jobs were shed in a previous restructuring…

Petra defers refinancing as diamond prices slide yet again

PETRA Diamonds has embarked on a fresh round of restructuring at its South African mines and has deferred a refinancing plan to this year. This follows the results from its third…

Karowe diamond mine

Lucara to spend $115m in 2025 completing Karowe shaft

LUCARA Diamond Corp. forecast capital spend of $115m in 2025 in order to complete construction of the Karowe underground expansion. The focus will fall on shaft sinking to the…

William Lamb, CEO, Lucara Diamonds

Lucara cuts revenue guidance as high value diamond sales fall

LUCARA Diamond Corp. said on Thursday revenue would be lower for its 2024 financial year than forecast owing to lower sales of high value diamonds, which comprise up to 70% of…

Richard Duffy, CEO, Petra Diamonds

Petra manipulates diamond sales mix to improve prices at the cost of rising debt

Petra Diamonds increased overall average diamond prices by 13% for the first two tenders of its financial year to June 2025 by manipulating its offered product mix through…