Gem Diamonds Continues Large-Stone Streak with 126ct. Rough 

Gem Diamonds has recovered a 126.21-carat rough from its Letšeng mine in Lesotho, its 12th stone over 100 carats so far this year. 

The miner discovered the high-quality, type II diamond on September 6, it said Wednesday. It found the stone five days after it unearthed a 122.20-carat rough, and marks its fourth retrieval of that caliber in just over a month. On August 23, the company added a 129.71-carat rough to its tally, while on August 3 it turned up a 145.55-carat stone. 

Other diamonds the company has extracted during the year included a 212.49-carat rough in May and two type IIa stones in April weighing 169.15 and 118.74 carats. 

The growing number of large diamonds compared with the previous few years is the result of operational initiatives Gem Diamonds implemented at its processing plant, which enable it to recover large stones with less breakage. While the total is on track to meet or exceed the 16 stones over 100 carats the miner found in 2020, it is well above the four in that category it recovered in both 2022 and 2023, and the six produced in 2021. 

The recovery of a higher number of large rough has led the company to raise its production and sales-volume forecast for the full year. It expects total output for 2024 to reach 98,000 to 101,000 carats, while sales volume will be between 100,000 and 103,000 carats. 

Image: The 126.21-carat rough. (Gem Diamonds)