Lucapa Diamond, an Australian company listed on the ASX under the symbol LOM, has announced the recovery of a significant 203-carat diamond at its prolific Lulo mine in Angola. This remarkable find marks the fifth-largest diamond ever unearthed at the operation.
Remarkably, this discovery also represents the third occurrence of a 100-carat-plus stone at Lulo within the current year. Lucapa reported that the high-quality, type IIa diamond was retrieved during the processing of run-of-mine stockpiled ore, following the recovery of 162 and 116-carat diamonds on consecutive days last month.
The Lulo mine, renowned for hosting the world’s highest dollar-per-carat alluvial diamonds, commenced commercial production in January 2015. Within a year of operation, it achieved a notable milestone by yielding Angola’s largest-ever diamond—a 404-carat white stone subsequently christened the “4th February Stone.”
Lucapa Diamond holds a 40% stake in the Lulo mine, with the remaining interests held by Angola’s national diamond company, Endiama, and Rosas & Petalas, a private entity.
Angola ranks as the world’s fifth-largest diamond producer by value and sixth by volume. The country’s diamond industry, which traces its roots back to a century ago under Portuguese colonial rule, is currently undergoing successful liberalization efforts.
Despite the promising discovery, Lucapa shares experienced a 4.7% decline to A10¢ on Thursday, resulting in a valuation of the company at A$27.6 million.
