Trading Statement

Petra Diamonds Ld
21 May 2003

21 May 2003





                            Petra back on Alto Cuilo





Petra Diamonds Limited ('Petra'), the AIM listed mining group, announces that it
has redeployed an exploration team on the Alto Cuilo concession in the Lunda
Norte province of Northern Angola and expects to have completed reconstruction
of its base camp on the concession before the end of May 2003.



Petra had established the presence of a major kimberlite on Alto Cuilo prior to
declaring force majeure in 1998. The Alto Cuilo concession is approximately 3000
square kilometres (approximately 1,160 square miles). There are, in addition,
six other known kimberlites on the property and a further 31 anomalies that will
be explored. These geological anomalies were identified by an extensive
geophysical survey undertaken by Petra in 1997. Petra's 2003 work programme,
approved last year by the Angolan diamond authority, Endiama, envisages two
drill rigs: one operating on the kimberlite discovered by Petra and the other
traversing the concession to explore the other known kimberlites and anomalies.



After visiting the concession last week, Petra chief operating officer David
Gadd-Claxton said: 'It is very exciting to be back on Alto Cuilo. We are picking
up on work undertaken prior to the force majeure and are looking forward to
rapid progress on what we believe is one of the best diamond projects in the
world.'



The team is lead by Giglio Rader, a veteran of 30 years of identification,
development and beneficiation of gold and diamond properties throughout Africa,
Saudi Arabia and Canada. Mr Rader was appointed as chief geologist for Petra's
Angolan operations in early May 2003.



The team has initiated base-line geological analysis in preparation for
resumption of diamond drilling shortly.





For further information, please contact:



Justine Howarth / Cathy Malins

Parkgreen Communications

Tel: [phone]


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