Rockwell Finds 189.6 Carat Diamond

Rockwell Diamonds mined a 189.6 carat diamond at its Klipdam mining operation north of Kimberley in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Initial indications suggest that the diamond is D Color, the miner said on Thursday.

The unusual find has an oval, somewhat flattened and strongly resorbed shape and shows features typical of top color high value type-2 diamonds.

Aside from sparse black inclusions on the one side of the rough diamond, the heart of the stone appears to be clean and could result in a final polished diamond of considerable value, the company added.

Rockwell has also recovered a rare 1.13 carat intense blue flawless diamond from the same mine. The miner is considering its marketing options for this diamond, which has been submitted for valuation.

Klipdam has produced rare fancy stones in the past, including a 7.28 carat intense flawless pink stone which was sold in November 2007 for $145,000 per carat.

Rockwell regularly recovers intense and vivid yellow colored diamonds from both Klipdam as well as the adjacent Holpan operation, and from its Wouterspan and Saxendrift operations on the Middle Orange River.

“We are ecstatic with the recovery of yet another large stone of exceptional size and color at Klipdam,” Rockwell President and chief executive John Bristow said, noting that finding diamonds greater than 100 carats in size “are an inherent part of the diamond population found in these unique alluvial deposits.”

So far four stones over 100 carats in size have been recovered from the site.