Brazilian Diamonds Buys De Beers Brazil Database

Canadian mineral exploration company Brazilian Diamonds Ltd has bought the De Beers Group’s diamond exploration database covering the Serra da Canastra area in Brazil’s mineral-rich state of Minas Gerais.

De Beers will become a substantial shareholder in Brazilian Diamonds, which paid C$2 million ($1.55 million) for the database covering 1.14 million acres around the Canastra 1 diamond-bearing kimberlite. 

De Beers will also receive two million share warrants in Brazilian Diamonds as part of the agreement and two further transactions agreed in principle and currently in documentation.

Brazilian Diamonds is seeking a permit from the Brazilian environmental agency Ibama to enable it to begin diamond production at the Canastra 1 kimberlite mine by the end of next March. Output is forecast at 30,000 carats in the first year.

The latest deal complements data obtained in Brazilian Diamonds’ purchase of De Beers' Brazilian subsidiary Mineracao do Sul in 2002.

"We can process the data faster, cheaper and quicker than De Beers which shifted its focus toward Canada but is still keeping in touch in Brazil," Brazilian Diamonds President and CEO Stephen Fabian told the Reuters news agency.

Fabian said that Brazilian Diamonds also hopes to purchase De Beers’ data sets of the Santo Antonio do Bonito and Abaete alluvial areas.

Brazilian Diamonds was formerly known as Black Swan Resources Ltd, which had gold mining interests in Australia.