Impact of Omicron Variant & Diamond Sales

RNS Number : 4827W

BlueRock Diamonds PLC

22 December 2021

 

BlueRock Diamonds PLC / AIM: BRD / Sector: Natural Resources

22 December 2021

BlueRock Diamonds PLC ('BlueRock' or the 'Company')

Impact of Omicron Variant & Diamond Sales

BlueRock Diamonds PLC, the AIM listed diamond producer, announces an update with regards to operations at its Kareevlei Diamond Mine ('Kareevlei') in the Kimberley region of South Africa.

As of today, there are 24 reported cases of COVID-19 amongst the Kareevlei workforce and circa 50% of the employees have not reported for work due to them having contact with affected employees. In all cases reported to date, no employees have experienced serious symptoms. 

Given the Company's key priority is the safety and wellbeing of its employees and their families, it has been decided to restrict operations at Kareevlei until the 3^rd of January 2022.  Provided that the situation does not worsen, it is intended to continue to process the stockpile of crushed ore during this period but no mining or crushing activities will take place.  It is hoped that the closure will act as a circuit breaker and that full operations will restart on 3^rd of January 2022 although it is not possible to predict how the pandemic will impact the Company's workforce over the coming weeks.

More positively, the potential impact of restricting operations on the Company's near term cashflow has been offset to some degree by a successful private sale of a small parcel of diamonds for a total USD545,000 at an average price of USD380 per carat, which included a high value 11.2 carat stone sold for USD97,000.

Further updates will be provided in due course.

Mike Houston Chairman said, "Restricting mining and crushing activities at Kareevlei is a difficult but unfortunately necessary and enforced step that we have decided to take as the health and safety of our employees is our top priority.  The closure comes at a very unwelcome time as both lines are now operational, and management has been focusing on ramping up production.  The Company expects to report on full year production during the middle of January where, as previously noted, the Company will be reporting 2021 production ahead of the lower end of its full year production guidance. We will continue to assess the impact of the pandemic on our operations as we move into 2022 and will report further as and when events unfold."

Large stones recovered in 2021

Date sold 2021	Carats	Value USD000	Value per carat USD000
December	11.2	97	8.7
November	7.6	67	8.9
November	7.6	61	8.0
November	6.5	53	8.1
September	7.1	64	9.1
August	14.3	236	16.5
August	58.6	585	10.0
August	21.6	268	12.4
May	6.3	52	8.3
March	8.4	89	10.6
March	10.7	73	6.8
March	9.8	53	5.5
January	14.8	163	11.0

Notes: It is the Company policy to announce all stones sold with a value of in excess of USD50k

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ('MAR'). Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service ('RIS'), this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

**ENDS**

For further information, please visit BRD's website  www.bluerockdiamonds.co.uk  or contact:

BlueRock Diamonds PLC Mike Houston David Facey, FD	[e-mail] [e-mail]
SP Angel (NOMAD and Broker) Stuart Gledhill / Caroline Rowe	Tel: [phone]
St Brides Partners Ltd (Financial PR) Isabel de Salis / Susie Geliher	Tel: [phone]

Notes to editors:

BlueRock Diamonds is an AIM-listed diamond producer which operates the Kareevlei Diamond Mine near Kimberley in South Africa which produces diamonds of exceptional quality and ranks in the top ten in the world in terms of average value per carat. The Kareevlei licence area covers 3,000 hectares and hosts five known diamondiferous kimberlite pipes with a combined inferred resource of 10.4 million tonnes / 516,200 carats (February 2021); based on its planned production of 1 million tonnes per annum, this provides a minimum 10-year life of mine. 

 

END

 

 

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