Alrosa Launches Zarya Diamond Mine

RAPAPORT… Alrosa has started diamond production at a new
deposit in Yakutia with an expected mine life of 11 years, it said Wednesday.

The Zarya pipe will help compensate for the diminishing resources at the miner’s Komsomolsky open-pit site, Alrosa noted. It will have
the capacity to process 1.25 million tonnes of ore per year. Zarya, which is in
the Aikhal division, cost the Russia-based miner RUB 12 billion ($187.3
million) to launch. 

“It is a landmark event for both Alrosa and our country,”
said the miner’s CEO, Sergey Ivanov. “It is already the second deposit launched in Yakutia
in such a short span of time.”

The company began operations at the Verkhne-Munskoye deposit in Yakutia
in October.

Image: Rough diamonds. (Alrosa)