A Wealth of Potential: Diamonds from Guinea

Guinea, a country in West Africa, is rich in natural resources, including bauxite, diamonds, gold and other metals. Most diamonds are mined artisanally and exported on a large scale. According to mbendi.com, Guinea is estimated to have approximately 20 million carats.

According to Stellar Diamonds, which operates the Baoule diamond project in Guinea, the area contains 3.3 million carats. Stellar also operates the Droujba kimberlite pipe in the region, and estimates that there are 2.5 million carats there. The Mandala alluvial diamond mine, which produced over 128,000 carats between 2009 and 2011, is currently estimated to contain 200,000 carats. According to Stellar, Both the Droujba and Mandala projects are currently on care and maintenance while the Baoule trial mining evaluation continues

Guinea entered The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in 2003, and has been a member of KP’s Artisanal and alluvial working group in the last few years. According to current KP figures, Guinea produced 164,058 carats in 2014 at a value of $24,749,840. This yielded an average of $150 per carat.