Global diamond supply
- Global rough diamond supply increased 19% in 2017, which was driven by new mines coming into production (Gahcho Kue and Renard in Canada and Liqhobong in Lesotho), as well as increases from Russia, Botswana, South Africa, the DRC and Australia
- The world’s largest diamond mines are maturing and past their peak production levels
- Potentially the world has already seen peak diamond production of circa 177 Mcts in 2005
- The success rate in diamond exploration is estimated as less than 1% and there have been no major new finds for over 20 years
- A number of mines came on stream in late 2016 – namely Gahcho Kue and Renard in Canada and Liqhobong in Lesotho, however these are not ‘new’ projects (Gahcho Kue was first discovered in 1997, Renard in 2001 and Liqhobong in the 1950’s)
- Supply forecast to decrease to ca. 145 Mcts in 2018, before decreasing to ca. 115 Mcts by 2030
World Diamond Mines
A key characteristic of diamond deposits is their scarcity, in contrast to many other commodities, and there are just 30 significant diamond mines in production today. Only seven mines in the world are considered to be Tier 1 deposits (+US$20 million Reserves).
To date, the most important discoveries (other than Argyle in Australia) have clustered into three regions of the world: southern Africa, Siberia, and western Canada.
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