JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Vancouver-based Lucara Diamond Corp will install four more X-ray transmission (XRT) diamond recovery units at its Karowe mine, in Botswana, to process finer-size fractions.
The new units, along with associated conveying and screening infrastructure, will target the recovery of diamonds in the 4 mm to 8 mm size range.
Lucara is investing $30-million on the units, which will process the dense high-quality Karowe south lobe ore at depth. The units are expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2017.
“Lucara continues to lead the way in the adoption of new technology to streamline the diamond recovery process, with the XRT technology being a proven success for diamond recovery at the company’s Karowe mine.
“The extension of XRT technology to recover the majority of our diamonds at Karowe maximises our overall processing efficiency and will contribute to continued strong operating margins across the entire value range for our high-quality south lobe diamonds,” says president and CEO William Lamb.
He adds that the implementation of new sorters will allow for improved control of the size fractions treated by the XRT machines, which is expected to improve production rates.
Large diamond recovery XRT units were used in the recovery of the 1 109 ct Lesedi La Rona – the second-largest diamond ever recovered – at Karowe in November last year.
Edited by: Chanel de Bruyn
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online
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