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Diamond Information

Types of Diamond Projects

Diamonds

Diamcor Mining has a proven, established history as a supplier of rough diamonds to the world market. Diamcor plans to continue to specialize in bringing near term production properties into revenue producing properties. There are various types of Diamond mining projects that Diamcor will continue to identify, evaluate and potentially acquire in order to achieve it's stated goal of increasing it's abilities to supply rough diamonds to a world market which is expected to increase in the coming years. All projects considered by the Company for acquisition or implementation, are classified into one of three categories when being considered. These categories, and the projects which are defined within them, all have specific characteristics which the Company considers when choosing what opportunities and projects best meet the Company's current stated focus and goals.

World Diamond Production

Natural diamonds are formed at certain conditions of high-pressure and high temperature that only exist at depths of 140 to 190 kilometers (90 to 120 miles) in certain parts of the Earth's mantle. The correct combination of temperature and pressure required to form diamonds is only found in the thick, ancient, and stable parts of continental plates called cratons.  Diamonds formed at depth are brought close to the surface through deep volcanic eruptions, forming igneous rocks known as kimberlites and (more rarely) lamproites.

Cratons are restricted to areas of the world including South, Central, and West Africa, Canada, Brazil, Russia, India and Australia - all areas that produce or have produced diamonds. The chart (right) of Global Diamond production shows the relative quantities of diamonds produced by each country

Diamond Producing Countries

Rough Diamond Sales

Once recovered, rough diamonds are sorted by experts in a controlled, secure environment, and categorized or grouped into parcels for tender.  The rough diamonds are sorted into various parcels according to their shape, size, clarity and colour, and it is at this point that potential gem quality diamonds are separated from industrial diamonds. Industrial diamonds are lower-quality stones which are not suited for gem purposes, but are suitable for use in various none-gem related applications due to overall characteristics of diamonds (IE; drill bits, cutting tools, medical devices, etc).  Once sorted into appropriate packages, the diamonds are delivered to an accredited diamond bourse for tender in conjunction with various other producing mines goods.  Tenders are typically held on a regular basis every four to six weeks depending on demand, and attended by the world's diamond buyers who purchase goods on behalf of their clients, or for their own use.

Traditionally in the past, the majority of diamonds were sold through De Beers' centralized selling channel, the Central Selling Organization (CSO), but it is now common for many companies, such as Diamcor Mining, to sell their rough diamonds to accredited diamond bourses and receive the best possible pricing.

Cutting and Polishing

Buyers known as diamantaires are often members or representatives of families that have dealt in the purchase, cutting and polishing and sale of gem-quality diamonds for generations. These parties attend auctions at accredited and registered diamond bourses around the world and place competing bids to 'win' the diamond parcels of their choice, which is largely dependent on their particular planned end use. Every diamond is unique due to its journey from deep depths of the Earth's volcanic pipes all the way to its manufacturing, ready to be set on a piece of jewellery, or selected for industrial use. All diamonds have qualities which allow buyers the ability to define and evaluate them from one another, called the 4C's of Diamonds, which include - Cut - Color - Clarity and Carat. It is the typically the variation, or a diamond's potential to meet certain of these 4C's that will price one stone higher than another.

CARAT - The weight of a diamond is measured by the term carat. One carat equals 0.2 gm. While the price per carat does tend to increase with increasing size of individual stones, there are typically more sharp jumps around milestone carat weights. These increases in value are also not proportionate, as a diamond of 5 carats is worth much more than five 1-carat stones of the same quality.

CLARITY - The clarity of a diamond can be lessened by various kinds of imperfections. Among these imperfections are inclusions (other substances enclosed in the crystals), small bubbles, small fissures or cracks, and off coloring not deemed to be desirable.

COLOUR - The best-quality diamonds (and the most valuable) are completely colourless ... allowing white light to pass through and be dispersed as rainbows of colour. Very few diamonds reach this standard, and ones that exhibit such tendencies bring a premium price.

Most diamonds are tinged with colour. If a diamond's colour is sufficiently intense, it is prized as a gem and called a "fancy". Most people are knowledgeable to the fact that traditional diamonds of clarity are more expensive, and virtually all have seen varying intense yellow diamonds which are again sold at a premium to normal diamonds. What many do not realize, is that rare diamonds appear in various colors such as purple, red, blue and pink, and black, all of which depending on their intensity and clarity can bring prices many multiples of that of traditional diamonds.

CUT - A well-cut diamond will internally reflect light from one facet to another and finally disperse it through a top facet of the stone. Diamonds that are cut too deep or too shallow lack brilliance because light escapes through the sides or bottom. There are various varieties of cuts which are largely based on consumer preference, the design of the jewelry items being procured, and the suitability of a rough diamond to maximize the use of the rough stone.

World Diamond Retail

The Kimberley Process is a certification system that prevents diamonds from an area of conflict entering the legitimate diamond supply chain. The Kimberley Process ensures that only rough diamonds accompanied by a government-issued certificate can be imported and exported, providing an assurance that the diamonds are from conflict free sources. Under this United Nations mandated system, only countries that are part of the Kimberley Process can import or export rough diamonds. Today, 74 countries are members of the Kimberley Process, ensuring that more than 99% of diamonds are from conflict free sources. Anyone who imports or exports rough diamonds between these countries without a Kimberley Process certificate is breaking the law. In addition to the Kimberley Process, the System of Warranties was developed by the World Diamond Council (WDC) to extend the Kimberley Process conflict free assurance to polished diamonds and provide a means by which consumers can be assured their diamonds are from conflict free sources. Its principal element is a declaration on the invoice accompanying every transaction (apart from the transaction directly to the consumer) of polished diamonds that declares the diamonds are ‘not involved in funding conflict and are in compliance with United Nations resolutions'. The System of Warranties provides assurance that diamonds are from conflict free sources all the way to the diamond jewellery retailer.

Jewellery manufacturing
Wholesalers or manufacturers buy relatively small amounts of unset, polished diamonds. Wholesalers sell these to jewellery designers, manufacturers or retailers. Manufacturers will produce diamond jewellery designed and commissioned by a retailer or other jewellery designer. They may also create jewellery, designed by in-house teams, and sold direct to retailers. The System of Warranties is used as a declaration on the invoice for each transaction of polished diamonds to assure industry purchasers and consumers that their diamonds are from conflict free sources.

Retailing
The final stage of the diamond pipeline is when diamond jewellery is sold by retailers to the consumer. The value of diamond jewellery sold each year is approximately US$72 billion, which includes the cost of the diamonds, precious metals and other gems. The USA represents the largest market followed by emerging markets of India and China. 

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