RAPAPORT... Signet Jewelers has launched a brick-and-mortar conceptstore for its e-commerce brand James Allen. The store, which opened on Friday in the Georgetown area ofWashington, D.C., will feature an immersive gallery experience aimed at thebrand's younger consumer base, the retailer said last week. "We're excited to continue executing Signet's customer-first,omni-channel stra...Read More
RAPAPORT... A Bulgari necklace fetched $200,000 at Phillips auctionhouse's first New York sale, exceeding its presale estimate of $120,000 to$180,000. The piece includes 39.35 carats of oval-shaped rubiesand 6 carats of round brilliant-cut diamonds. It was the top-selling lot at theauction, which earned $2.4 million overall, Phillips said. A ring featuring an emerald-cut, 4.91-carat, faint-pi...Read More
RAPAPORT... Dominion Diamond Mines CEO Patrick Evans has resigned withimmediate effect after a year at the company, the miner confirmed to RapaportNews Sunday. Evans joined the Canada-based producer in November 2017 afterits $1.2 billion acquisition by Washington Companies. Prior to that, he was CEOof Mountain Province for 12 years. Shane Durgin, Dominion's chief operating officer, will take...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucapa Diamond Company says that diamonds from the Lulo mine in Angola will feature in an historic inaugural international tender under Angola's new diamond marketing laws recently approved by the President of Angola, Joao Lourenco, and the country's Council of Ministers. Sociedade Mineira Do Lulo, of which Lucapa is a partner, will showcase and sell seven large and exc...Read More
LONDON – Dominion Diamond CEO Patrick Evans has left the company, marking at least the third high-profile departure in less than a year at the Canadian miner, which is owned by billionaire Dennis Washington.Evans confirmed that he departed on December 5. Shane Durgin, who was COO, took over as CEO effective December 7, Evans said in a telephone interview Sunday. Evans said he plans to stay o...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds Limited is selling off its interest in Helam Mining (Pty) Ltd in South Africa to Lindleys Mining (Pty) Ltd for a nominal consideration ZAR200 ($14) with immediate effect. Petra put the Helam mine on care on maintenance during FY 2015 following previous attempts to find a suitable purchaser, and no mining activities have been conducted by Petra since then. &nbs...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Stornoway Diamond Corporation said that the remaining tranches of financing announced on October 2 have been completed or approved for completion. A $10 million private placement with Ressources Qu?(C)bec Inc. acting as agent for the government of Qu?(C)bec, was completed on December 7. A 2-year deferral of principal payments on the Renard Mine Road Loan was authori...Read More
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – A 78 ct white diamond has been recovered from the Mothae diamond mine, in Lesotho.ASX-listed Lucapa Diamond Company on Monday reported that the large diamond was recovered through the new 1.1-million-tonne-a-year treatment plant, where commercial production was declared earlier this month.Advertisement“We are extremely delighted to have started our commercial...Read More
RAPAPORT... Signet Jewelers has launched a brick-and-mortar conceptstore for its e-commerce brand James Allen. The store, which opened on Friday in the Georgetown area ofWashington, DC, will feature an immersive gallery experience aimed at thebrand's younger consumer base, the retailer said last week. "We're excited to continue executing Signet's customer-first,omni-channel strate...Read More
RAPAPORT... A Bulgari necklace fetched $200,000 at Phillips auctionhouse's first New York sale, exceeding its presale estimate of $120,000 to$180,000. The piece includes 39.35 carats of oval-shaped rubiesand 6 carats of round brilliant-cut diamonds. It was the top-selling lot at theauction, which earned $2.4 million overall, Phillips said. A ring featuring an emerald-cut, 4.91-carat, faint-pi...Read More
LISBON – Angola will conduct its first diamond auction in January as part of the southwest African country’s plan to open its economy to foreign investors, state-owned diamond-trading company Sodiam said.Seven gemstones from the Lulo mine, located in the northeast, will come under the hammer, Sodiam said in an emailed statement Monday. They include a 114 ct stone and a pink, 46 ct gem....Read More
RAPAPORT... Dominion Diamond Mines CEO Patrick Evans has stepped down withimmediate effect after a year at the company, the miner confirmed to RapaportNews Sunday. Evans joined the Canada-based producer in November 2017 afterits $1.2 billion acquisition by Washington Companies. Prior to that, he was CEOof Mountain Province for 12 years. Shane Durgin, Dominion's chief operating officer, will...Read More
RAPAPORT... Petra Diamonds has offloaded its Helam mine in South Africa fora total price of ZAR 200 ($14). Petra put the asset on care and maintenance in 2015 after failingto find a suitable buyer, and hasn't carried out any mining there since. It hasnow sold it to Lindleys Mining to support a South African government program toprolong the lives of deposits facing closure, Petra said last week. T...Read More
RAPAPORT... Global Witness is calling for improved transparency in Zimbabwe's diamond sector, pitching it as a test case for the new president's economic reforms."The new government's handling of the Marange diamond industry will be a clear indication of whether its commitments to economic reform and anti-corruption go beyond lip service," Sophia Pickles, campaign leader for the organization,...Read More
RAPAPORT... Canada's Northwest Territories (NWT) has abolished its banon diamond manufacturers sending rough to other locations for processing,potentially enabling significant cost savings for the industry. Rules in place since 1999 have required the region's cutting-and-polishingfirms to keep all their goods inside the NWT for manufacturing. That has restrictedgrowth, as diamonds cost about...Read More
RAPAPORT... Blue Nile has appointed former Starbucks executive AlexandraWheeler as chief marketing officer. Wheeler will lead the company's brand-marketing andcustomer-experience teams. She will focus on creating an "integrated andmeaningful brand experience" for Blue Nile's digital customers, Blue Nile CEOJason Goldberger said last week. Wheeler was vice president of global digitalmarketing...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sotheby's has divided the responsibilities of its chief operating officer, hiring two new executives to replace the departing Adam Chinn.The auction house has appointed John Cahill (pictured, above), a founding partner of art-law firm Cahill Cossu Noh & Robinson, and former general counsel at Phillips, as executive vice president and chief commercial officer. He will be respon...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The global diamond industry emerged stronger in 2017 with 2 percent growth across all segments of the value chain, following a period of high volatility, according to the Bain & Company report on the industry's performance in 2017 and the first half of this year. In line with positive luxury market trends, global diamond jewelry sales grew last year, fueled by stro...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucapa Diamond Company said that commercial diamond recoveries have commenced at the new treatment plant at the Mothae diamond mine in Lesotho. Managing Director Stephen Wetherall said the commencement of commercial recoveries through the new 1.1Mtpa Mothae plant represented another key milestone in Lucapa's strategic development plan. "Lucapa is on track to become on...Read More
RAPAPORT... Global Witness is calling for improved transparency in Zimbabwe's diamond sector, pitching it as a test case for the new president's economic reforms."The new government's handling of the Marange diamond industry will be a clear indication of whether its commitments to economic reform and anti-corruption go beyond lip service," Sophia Pickles, campaign leader for the organization,...Read More