Gem Diamonds raked in $71.6 from rough sales at Letseng, in Lesotho, during the first half of 2023 – down 19% year-on-year. According to IDEXOnline, the UK-based miner “blamed the ongoing downturn, fewer recoveries of high-value diamonds, and power outages interrupting ore processing.”
In Letseng, average prices went down 22% during the period to $1,373. The miner sold twelve $1 million-plus diamonds for a total of $21 million during H1. The highest priced diamond was a 6.63-carat pink sold for $282,889 per carat. A 58.07-carat Type IIa white diamond – the highest priced diamond among the whites – sold for $34,441 per carat.
The company commented: “During the period increasing grid electricity interruptions caused a reduction in volumes of ore processed. “In addition, higher than expected internal basalt dilution in certain domains of ore that was treated impacted throughput.”
