Lucara Diamond Corp. ("Lucara" or the "Company") is very pleased to announce the results from its second Exceptional Stone Tender. The special tender of Karowe diamonds was completed on September 2, 2013 and consisted of 16 single stone lots.
All 16 stones, totaling 1,028 carats were sold for gross revenues of $24.7 million ($24,026 per carat), an outstanding result. The highest value stone was a 135.4 carat diamond which sold for $6.37 million with an additional 3 diamonds selling for more than $2.5 million each.
The Company will hold one regular tender during the third quarter where 80,000 carats will be on sale, including more than 30 single stones larger than 10.8 carats.
William Lamb, President and CEO, commented:
"This sale demonstrates that the market remains very strong for large and exceptional diamonds adding significantly to the value of Karowe Mine which continues to outperform expectations. We could not be happier with the result."
The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. John Armstrong as Vice President - Mineral Resources of the Company effective as of September 3, 2013. Dr. Armstrong replaces Dr. Ott who will be retiring but who will be retained on a consultancy basis.
John Armstrong has over 25 years of combined experience in mineral exploration, mining and government. Dr. Armstrong has been involved in the planning and execution of successful diamond exploration and sampling programs ranging from generative to delineation and valuation. Dr. Armstrong has strong capabilities in the assessment and analysis of diamond size distributions, content modeling, and value distributions.
About Lucara
Lucara is a well positioned new diamond producer. The Company has an experienced board and management team with extensive diamond development and operations expertise. The Company's two key assets are the Karowe Mine in Botswana and the Mothae Project in Lesotho. The 100% owned Karowe Mine is in production. The 75% owned Mothae Project has completed its trial mining program.
On Behalf of the Board,
William Lamb, President and CEO
Lucara's Certified Advisor on NASDAQ OMX First North is Pareto Öhman AB.