“These are vital, not just to our own success, but to ensuring that the countries in which we operate benefit from the natural resource that we mine,” Philippe commented.
At Jwaneng, the world’s richest diamond mine by value, in southern Botswana, the Cut-8 project will extend mining operations until at least 2025 and produce somewhere in the region of 110 million carats in the process.
“Of the 1,400 jobs created by Cut-8, almost 90% were allocated to Botswana citizens, helping ensure that our presence benefits local communities as much as possible.”
Philippe believes that the Cut-8 project builds on the strong foundations of De Beers’ 45-year partnership with the Government of the Republic of Botswana.
“For every five dollars generated through our mining and related activities in the country, four of these are fed back to government revenues through taxation and dividends,” he added.
“If we are to truly realise the benefit of our investments, partnerships such as these must be the model for how we work.”
De Beers’ biggest investment
In South Africa, where De Beers’ story began some 126 years ago, the company’s largest ever investment to build a new underground mine beneath the current open-pit mine at Venetia is on track to open in 2021. When operational, around 94 million carats will be produced up to 2040, seeing it replace the current open-pit as South Africa’s largest mine.
“Most of the 3,000 people working on the project are from the surrounding Limpopo province, have been given the relevant training by De Beers and will go on to help develop the country’s growing technical skills base once the project is complete.”
But it’s not just in southern Africa where De Beers is staking its claim in the future.
In Canada’s Northwest Territories, the construction of a new open-pit mine, Gahcho Kué, is well under way. The mine is expected to deliver an estimated 53 million carats over its 12-year life when production begins during the second half of 2016.
