[2019-02-13] Angola wants to polish 20% of the diamonds extracted in the country

Source: Macauhub

The Angolan private sector will soon cut and polish 20% of the diamonds mined in the country, with the remaining 80% being exported in the rough, the Minister of Mineral Resources and Oil said on Tuesday.

Diamantino Azevedo said that as part of the new official diamond production and marketing policy, this move aims to make the Angolan diamond polishing and cutting industry one of the main producers in the region, with the gradual introduction of quality companies and facilities.

“The approval of the new policy for the sale of rough diamonds in July 2018 is focused on encouraging new investments in the transformation of diamonds mined in Angola, to encourage the creation of cutting plants and job creation,” said the minister, quoted by Angolan news agency Angop.

The minister, speaking at the opening ceremony of the Stone Polished Diamond diamond cutting plant, added that the ministry and the Angola’s national diamond trading company Sodiam are preparing to set up more diamond cutting units, preferably in provinces where diamonds can be found, “with the institutional support of the government.”

Stone Polished Diamond, whose facilities cover an area of 400 square metres, represents an investment of over US$5.0 million, 10% of which was funded by Sodiam. The facility is expected to cut and polish 2,000 carats of diamonds per month in the first year of operation, and will process diamonds ranging from 3 to 10 carats and some special stones.

This new plant joins Angola Polishing Diamond, inaugurated in Luanda in 2015, with an annual capacity to process diamonds worth around US$240 million, in a partnership between Sodiam and LLD Diamonds of Israeli group Lev Leviev, the world’s largest diamond cutter.