Stornoway Names Patrick Godin as CEO

RAPAPORT… Stornoway Diamond Corporation has appointed a new CEO after reporting its third successive quarterly loss. 


Patrick Godin, Stornoway’s chief operating officer, will
succeed Matt Manson on January 1, the company said Wednesday.


Stornoway recorded a net loss of CAD 37.6 million ($28.5
million) for the third quarter after writing CAD 22.4 million ($16.9 million)
off the value of its inventory, it reported in a separate statement. That
compares with a profit of CAD 2.3 million ($1.7 million) a year ago. The
deficit came to CAD 84.5 million ($63.9 million) for the year to date after
losses in each of the first three quarters.


Revenue slumped 41% to CAD 29.4 million ($22.2 million) in
the third quarter as the miner sold goods that it produced during second
quarter, when ore grades at its Renard mine were relatively low. It has also suffered from a drop in demand for lower-value rough stones amid a slowdown in the
Indian manufacturing sector.


“We continue to see weakness in the diamond market,
particularly in smaller and lower-quality items, and this has continued through
into the fourth quarter,” Manson noted.


Manson has been president of Stornoway since March 2007, and
added CEO to his job title in January 2009.


Image: Patrick Godin. (Stornoway Diamond Corporation)