Rio Tinto Offers Diavik Mine Employees ‘Voluntary Separation’

Rio Tinto is offering workers at its Diavik diamond mine an early termination to their employment contracts, in the hopes of saving money in the lead-up to the deposit’s closure. 

The move is in response to the challenges currently facing the diamond industry, the company told Rapaport News Tuesday. It also enables Rio Tinto to downsize as it works its way to the mine’s imminent end of life. 

“I can confirm that Diavik is looking at voluntary separation as part of our efforts to manage costs and rightsize our business given the relatively short runway to Diavik’s planned closure in 2026,” said Matthew Breen, chief operating officer at Diavik. 

While the deposit is due to close in 2026, some workers will remain at the site until 2029, as the company works on the closure and reclamation process. Diavik currently employes more than 1,200 workers. 

Despite the new initiative to minimize its staff, Rio Tinto still sees a strong future for the mine over the remainder of its lifespan. 

“Although there are challenges in the current diamond market, the fundamentals are strong,” Breen added. “We are still seeing strong demand for Canadian diamonds of clean, sustainable provenance and we expect this to accelerate as we approach the closure of Diavik and our product becomes even more rare. We continue to be committed to the safe production of diamonds, fulfilling our commitments to our workforce and northern community partners, and to closing Diavik responsibly.” 

Image: The Diavik mine. (Rio Tinto)