| Location | |
|---|---|
  Karowe diamond mine Location of Karowe diamond mine | |
| Location | Central District, Botswana |
| Coordinates | 21°29′59″S25°28′16″E / 21.49972°S 25.47111°E |
| Production | |
| Products | Diamonds |
| Owner | |
| Company | Lucara Diamond |
Karowe diamond mine is a mine located in Botswana. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] It is an open-pit mine. [8] In 2021, Lucara Diamond secured $220 million to take the mine underground. [9]
The Karowe Mine ("Karowe" is a local Sesarwa term for "a precious stone"), situated in northern Botswana was discovered in 1970 by De Beers, which also found the Orapa, the country's first diamond mine, plus three others in the mid-1970s. [10]
De Beers discovered the kimberlite A/K6, but their early evaluation showed low economic importance, the mine having only a 3.4-hectare surface area. The ownership was transferred three times. In 2009, De Beers sold their 70% shareholding in the mine to Canadian company Lucara Diamond for $49 million. Later, Lucara acquired full ownership of the mine. [10]
The mine was commissioned in 2012. In June, the first sale of rough diamonds from the mine was held. Generally, its first years of production went better. [10]
The company uses modern equipment, giving them the ability to recover large diamonds that the mine has become known for. [10] One piece of equipment is X-ray Transmission (XRT) technology, introduced in 2015, [10] which later resulted in the recovery of a number of diamonds over 300 carats or 60 grams each. [11]
By mid-2018, the mine was employing over 800 people, more than 98% of them were local citizens. [10]
In 2015, seven diamonds were recovered in the mine, more than 60 g (300 carats) each; three of them within a week in November: "Lesedi La Rona" (originally 222.2 g (1,111 carats); after cleaning, 221.8 g (1,109 carats)) [12] "The Constellation" (160.6 g (803 carats)) and an unnamed 374-ct gem. Along with the earlier-recovered 68.4 g (342 carats)"Queen of the Kalahari", all of them, with a combined weight of 527.6 g (2,638 carats) were sold for $154 million. [10]
Notably, "Lesedi La Rona" (Tswana term for "Our Light") [12] was then the world's second largest gem-quality rough diamond, following the Cullinan Diamond recovered in 1905 in the present-day South Africa. [12] [11] At the same time, it was also Botswana's largest, surpassing that found at the Jwaneng Mine in 1993. [10] In 2017, it was sold to London-based jeweller Graff for $53 million. [12] [10]
Lucara later beat its own record discovery twice. [11] [13] In 2019, Sewelô , a 351.6 g (1,758 carats) [11] [14] diamond, was found at the same mine. [14] It was later bought by French brand Louis Vuitton for an undisclosed amount. [14] [13]
On August 22, 2024, Lucara announced the discovery of a 498.4 g (2,492 carats) rough diamond there. [15] Currently, it is the second-largest gem-quality diamond ever found [16] and, according to the government of Botswana, the largest ever discovered in the country. [13]
The De Beers Centenary Diamond is, at 273.85 carats (54.770 g), the third-largest diamond to have been produced in the Premier Mine. Among top-color diamonds, only the Cullinan I and II are larger than the Centenary diamond. The Centenary Diamond is rated in color as grade D color by the Gemological Institute of America, which is the highest grade of colourless diamond and is internally and externally flawless. It was named the Centenary Diamond as it was presented in the rough for the Centennial Celebration of De Beers Consolidated Mines on 11 May 1988. The Centenary Diamond was unveiled in final form in May 1991.
The Premier Mine is an underground diamond mine owned by Petra Diamonds in the town of Cullinan, 40 kilometres (25 mi) east of Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa. Established in 1902, it was renamed the Cullinan Diamond Mine in November 2003 in celebration of its centenary. The mine is a carrot-shaped volcanic pipe and has a surface area of 32 hectares. The mine rose to prominence in 1905, when the Cullinan Diamond – the largest rough diamond of gem quality ever found – was discovered there.
Harry Winston was an American jeweler. He donated the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian Institution in 1958 after owning it for a decade. He also traded the Portuguese Diamond to the Smithsonian in 1963 in exchange for 3,800 carats of small diamonds.
The Lesotho Promise, a 603 carat diamond stone of exceptional colour was unearthed on 22 August 2006 at the Letseng diamond mine in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. Announced on 4 October 2006, it was the largest reported find this century and the 15th largest diamond ever found. The stone is rated 'D', the top colour band for diamonds.
The Letšeng Diamond Mine, found in the landlocked Southern African kingdom of Lesotho, is owned by Gem Diamonds, Ltd. and the government of Lesotho, at an elevation of 3,100 m (10,200 ft) it is the world's highest diamond mine.
The largest flawless diamond in the world is known as The Paragon, a D-color gem weighing 137.82 carats (27.564 g), and the tenth largest white diamond in the world. The gem was mined in Brazil and attracted attention for being an exceptional white, flawless stone of great size. The Mayfair-based jeweller Graff Diamonds acquired the stone in Antwerp, cut it into an unusual seven-sided kite shield configuration, and set it in a necklace which separates to both necklace and bracelet lengths. Apart from the main stone, this necklace also contains rare pink, blue, and yellow diamonds, making a total mass of 190.27 carats (38.054 g). The necklace has associations with the end of the millennium and was worn by model Naomi Campbell at a diamond gala held by De Beers and Versace at Syon House in 1999.
Mmadikola is a village in the Central District of Botswana. It is located in the western part of the district, close to Makgadikgadi Pan, and it has a primary school. The population was 828 in 2001 census.
The mining industry of Botswana has dominated the national economy of Botswana since the 1970s, being a primary sector industry. Diamond has been the leading component of the mineral sector ever since production of gems started being extracted by the mining company Debswana. Most of Botswana's diamond production is of gem quality, resulting in the country's position as the world's leading producer of diamond by value. Copper, gold, nickel, coal and soda ash production also has held significant, though smaller, roles in the economy.
Gem Diamonds is a British-based global diamond mining business. It is headquartered in London and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. In 2017, the company generated a profit of $20.8 million.
Petra Diamonds Ltd is a diamond mining group headquartered in Jersey. Petra own one of the world's most productive mines historically, the Cullinan Diamond Mine is famed for having produced the world's largest rough and polished diamond. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Brown diamonds are the most common color variety of natural diamonds. In most mines, brown diamonds account for 15% of production. The brown color makes them less attractive to some people as gemstones, and most are used for industrial purposes. However, improved marketing programs, especially in Australia and the United States, have resulted in brown diamonds becoming valued as gemstones and even referred to as chocolate diamonds.
Graff is a British multinational jeweller based in London. It was founded by British jeweller Laurence Graff in 1960. A vertically integrated company, Graff operations comprise the design, manufacture and retail distribution of jewellery and watches.
Lucara Diamond Corp. is a diamond exploration and mining company, founded in 2009 by two Canadian mining executives, Eira Thomas, Catherine McLeod-Seltzer, and Swedish-Canadian mining billionaire Lukas Lundin, operating in Southern Africa but established in Canada. In August 2024, the world's second largest gem-quality diamond ever found, was found at the Karowe mine in Botswana.
Lesedi La Rona, formerly known in media as Karowe AK6 or as Quad 1 by the personnel at the mine, is the fifth-largest diamond ever found, and the third-largest of gem quality. It was found in the Karowe mine, in Botswana on 16 November 2015.
The following lists events that happened during 2015 in Botswana.
The Sewelô diamond is the fourth-largest rough diamond ever found. The diamond was recovered in April 2019 by the Lucara Diamond Corp in its Karowe diamond mine in Botswana. The diamond is 1,758 carats and weighs 352 grams or 12.39 oz.
HB Antwerp is a diamond cutting and technology company based in Antwerp, Belgium. It was founded in 2020 by Shai de Toledo, Rafael Papismedov, and Oded Mansori.
Events in the year 2024 in Botswana.