Diamond production in Namibia rose by 3% to 600,000 carats, driven by higher-grade mining and improved recoveries at Namdeb. Namdeb is well-known for its unique position, with diamond exploration and mining along the south-west coast, offshore in the shallow waters, and inland areas of Namibia’s //Karas Region. It is quite fascinating to see diamonds being vacuumed up at the beach and from the sea floor.
Other Southern African production: In Botswana, production decreased by 31% to 4.2 million carats as a result of planned actions to lower production at Jwaneng. According to De Beers’ production report for the fourth quarter ended 31 December 2024, deliberate lower production at Debmarine Namibia partially offset this.
CHAMWE KAIRA
Windhoek Observer Magazine
Journalist Chamwe Kaira at Windhoek Observer Magazine writes about Namibia’s diamond fields… or should we say beaches? You see, much of what is being mined in Namibia is either under layers of sand at the beach, or just off the coast laying on the sea floor.
“Namibia has the richest known marine diamond deposits in the world, with diamond resources estimated at approximately 75 million carats in approximately 1.0 million square kilometres of seabed.
“Marine diamond deposits represent around 80% of the partnership’s total diamond production and 94% of its diamond resources, based on the Anglo American 2024 Integrated Report. Anglo American owns De Beers.”
In South Africa, production increased by 27% to 600 000 carats, due to Venetia underground and a slight improvement in grades of processed ore.
Production in Canada decreased by 43% to 500 000 carats as a result of planned actions to treat lower-grade ore.
Overall, rough diamond production decreased by 26% to 5.8 million carats, reflecting a proactive production response to the prolonged period of lower demand and higher than normal levels of inventory in the midstream.
De Beers continues to focus on managing working capital, and despite low sales volumes, inventory has reduced slightly year-on-year through managing purchases and downstream stocks.
The company reported continued weak trading conditions in the quarter, with cautious retailer purchasing and excess midstream inventory suppressing demand for rough diamonds.
The group is undertaking an impairment review of De Beers’ carrying value, assessing the impact of diamond market conditions and the general fall in demand in China, which is likely to lead to an impairment at the full-year results.
Duncan Wanblad, Chief Executive of Anglo American, said, “All of our businesses delivered their full-year production guidance following another solid operational performance in the fourth quarter.” He said the company is preparing De Beers business for separation.
De Beers expects its full-year 2024 EBITDA to be slightly negative.
“We continue to assess market conditions and are currently implementing actions to further manage cash flow, spending, and inventory levels in 2025.”
Production guidance for 2025 was revised to 20-23 million carats (100% basis) (previously 30-33 million carats), reflecting the challenging rough diamond trading conditions.
In Namibia, the joint venture between De Beers and the government includes Debmarine, Namdeb land operations and the Namibia Diamond Trading Company.
Tap here to read the report on Namibian diamond reserves in the Windhoek Observer.
Tap here to read about diamond production from the Windhoek Observer.
