Diavik ahead of design capacity

Although grades are being hampered by the processing of mud-rich kimberlite material surrounding the A-154 South orebody, the Diavik mine in the Northwest Territories is operating at levels comfortably ahead of design capacity rates of 1.5 million tonnes per year.

For the first three months of 2004, Diavik recovered a little more than 1.5 million carats of rough diamonds from the treatment of 394,000 tonnes of kimberlite ore — a 40% increase in carats over the previous quarter but just a 4.8% gain over the third quarter of 2003. Production in the final three months of 2003 was adversely affected by the processing of stockpiled lower-grade ore from the A-154 South pipe and transitional low-grade material from the top of A-154 North. During its first ramp-up year of operations, 2003, the Diavik mine produced more than 3.8 million carats of rough diamonds at an operating cash cost of US$31 per carat.

Diavik Diamond Mines, the mine operator and wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto (RTP-N), is forecasting a production target for 2004 of somewhere in the mid-to-upper range of 7-8 million carats, based on a throughput of 1.7 million tonnes. To support this increase, Diavik is adding three new 218-tonne haulage trucks to its mining fleet. The trucks were transported to the mine site over the winter road and will be assembled and commissioned on site in the next few months.

At March 31, Diavik’s workforce totalled 700 people, 73% of whom were northern-based. Aboriginal employment at the first quarter’s end was 36%. The Diavik mine is owned 60% by Rio Tinto and 40% by Aber Diamond (ABZ-T).