The fund package was completed following the final installment of £1.96m from Laurelton Diamonds, subsidiary of Tiffany. It also included $6m Tiffany loan, £4.2m of convertible bonds and £15.6m from the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa.
Meanwhile, the company stated that Main pipe at the mine contains 33.1 million tons of kimberlite with an indicated and inferred resource to a depth of 855m with nearly 13.4 million carats at an average grade of 40.1 carats per hundred tons.
Also, the kimberlite is open at depth, and contains a significant bulge between 250m and 360m depth with the potential to add additional tonnage and diamonds, it added.
DiamondCorp that commenced excavation of a new 66,000 bank cubic metre (bcm) has completed excavation of a total of 23,000 bcm and plans to complete the remaining during the current quarter.
In addition, it has planned a drilling cubby on the 26 level inside the Main pipe besides ordering a skid mounted underground drilling rig expected to be delivered and commissioned during the next quarter.
Following this, the company has planned for underground drilling of 2,000m and 47 level block cave area to define the kimberlite margins.
DiamondCorp CEO Paul Loudon stated that the company would commence diamond production from tailings retreatment over next three months.
"This will initially be on a one shift basis while the upgraded processing plant is re-commissioned. We will then have the capacity to ramp up to three shifts in the second half of the year depending on diamond prices," added Loudon.
At a carat value of $160 per carat, the company values the resource in excess of $2.1bn.
