Diavik mine transitions below ground

by eyetee | April 5, 2010 12:00 am

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Work at Diavik is heading underground, extending the life of the open-pit diamond mine beyond 2020.

Senior Rio Tinto officials, traditional owners, Northwest Territories dignitaries, and employees marked the milestone with an inauguration ceremony late last month.

“We are delighted to celebrate Rio Tinto’s first underground diamond mine,” said Kim Truter, president and chief operating officer (COO) of the Diavik mine. “I am enormously proud of the team who has helped make this happen safely and responsibly in some of the harshest operating conditions in the world. This achievement ensures Diavik will continue to provide local training, employment, and business benefits for many years to come.”

Operating as an open-pit mine since 2003, Diavik is a 60/40 joint venture between Rio Tinto and Harry Winston Diamond Corp.

Rio Tinto says it will ramp up underground operations as the open pits are depleted. It expects work to be fully underground by 2012.

The mine comprises three diamond-bearing kimberlite pipes. A fourth pipe is currently under review to determine viability.

“The Diavik diamond mine is a world-class resource that has required significant financial commitment from Rio Tinto and its partners,” said Harry Kenyon-Slaney, Rio Tinto’s chief executive of diamonds and minerals. “From the mid-1990s when the initial discovery of Diavik was made and the joint venture arrangements put in place, we have fully supported the development plans for Diavik. Today, a new chapter begins and I am proud to acknowledge the many men and women who have contributed to the onward course of the mine.”

Source URL: https://www.jewellerybusiness.com/news/diavik-mine-transitions-below-ground/

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