Robert Gannicott, who helped discover the almighty Diavik diamond mine in Canada and founded the mining company now known as Dominion Diamond Corporation, died on August 4, 20616, after a two-year battle with leukemia. He was 69.
The chairman of the Israel Diamond Institute, Shmuel Schnitzer, expressed his condolences to Jim Pounds, Executive Vice President of Dominion Diamonds, regarding the passing away of Bob Gannicott, CEO of the Corporation. Schnitzer said: “We have witnessed and appreciate the long years of Bob Gannicott’s activity in the diamond industry both worldwide and in Israel in particular.” He asked to convey our heartfelt condolences to his family.
Exploring Canada
The story of Gannicott is essentially the story of Canadian diamonds. Described by the company he founded and helped build as “a visionary and a pillar of the Canadian diamond industry”, Gannicott was a geologist by training. Along with many other explorers, he arrived at the Northwest Territories in Canada after a kimberlite deposit was found there. In time, this deposit became the Ekati diamond mine.
In 1994, the same year the Diavik mine was discovered, Gannicott co-founded the Aber Diamond Corporation. In 2004, Aber acquired 51% of the luxury jewelry and watch retail brand Harry Winston Inc. Two years later, in 2006, it acquired 100% of the brand. In 2007, The Company changed its name from Aber Diamond Corporation to Harry Winston Diamond Corporation, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. In 2013, The Company purchased a controlling interest in the Ekati mine, taking on the new name Dominion Diamond Corporation.
Today, Dominion Diamond has ownership interests in the two biggest diamond producing minds in the country: the Ekati Diamond Mine (in which it owns an 88.9% controlling interest) and the Diavik Diamond Mine (in which it owns a 40% controlling interest). Dominion is the world’s third largest producer of rough diamonds by value. Gannicott, who founded the company, acted as its CEO and sat on its board for 12 years until his retirement, was one of the driving forces behind Dominion, including the purchase of Harry Winston and its eventual sale in 2013.
Dominion Mines
Ekati was Canada’s first diamond mine, located some 100 kilometers south of the North Pole and 300 kilometers north of Yellowknife, the mining city. Today, its annual diamond sales amount to 3% in weight and 6% in value of the overall global annual sales of rough diamonds.
The Diavik Diamond Mine is North America’s most profitable diamond mine. It has one of the world’s highest ore grades, and the global diamond industry regards the stones as high quality in terms of color and clarity. In mid-January, 2016, Dominion reported that it plans to recover 7 million carats from Diavik in 2016. Diamonds recovered in the year 2015 reached 6.4 million carats, which was 9% lower than the company’s original plan of 7.0 million carats for the year.
