DIAMOND sales by Namdeb, a subsidiary of diamond mining giant De Beers, soared 49percent last year, the company said yesterday.
Diamond sales came to about 5 billion Namibian dollars (about R5billion) from 3,3billion Namibia dollars in 2009, when Namdeb was hit by the global economic crisis, the firm's brand manager Pauline Thomas said.
"Some 1,52 million carats worth of diamonds were sold in 2010, compared to 1,36 million carats in 2009," Thomas told reporters.
Production was also up last year, rising to 1,47 million carats compared to 929000 carats mined in 2009. After taxes and mining royalties, Namdeb made a net profit of 419 million Namibia dollars in 2010, against losses of 414 million Namibia dollars in 2009.
"We remain cautious about the diamond market in 2011. The US market is expected to continue its recovery and the exceptional growth seen in China and India is expected to be sustained," said Namdeb managing director Inge Zaamwani-Kamwi.
She told reporters that Namdeb was planning to extend operations for another four decades to 2050, but shifting mining more to marine mining offshore.
Most land mining operations would cease by 2015, but re-opening one shuttered mine and new underwater mines along 200km of coastline would prolong diamond production, Zaamwani-Kamwi said.
Namdeb's diamond sales soar by 49%
DIAMOND sales by Namdeb, a subsidiary of diamond mining giant De Beers, soared 49percent last year, the company said yesterday.
Diamond sales came to about 5 billion Namibian dollars (about R5billion) from 3,3billion Namibia dollars in 2009, when Namdeb was hit by the global economic crisis, the firm's brand manager Pauline Thomas said.
"Some 1,52 million carats worth of diamonds were sold in 2010, compared to 1,36 million carats in 2009," Thomas told reporters.
Production was also up last year, rising to 1,47 million carats compared to 929000 carats mined in 2009. After taxes and mining royalties, Namdeb made a net profit of 419 million Namibia dollars in 2010, against losses of 414 million Namibia dollars in 2009.
"We remain cautious about the diamond market in 2011. The US market is expected to continue its recovery and the exceptional growth seen in China and India is expected to be sustained," said Namdeb managing director Inge Zaamwani-Kamwi.
She told reporters that Namdeb was planning to extend operations for another four decades to 2050, but shifting mining more to marine mining offshore.
Most land mining operations would cease by 2015, but re-opening one shuttered mine and new underwater mines along 200km of coastline would prolong diamond production, Zaamwani-Kamwi said.