Debswana will embark on a project dubbed Cut 8 aimed at extending the life of the Jwaneng diamond mine and one that will "contribute to its growth and sustainability".
Cut 8 is one of the few projects that Debswana is launching after the company cut project spending to cope with the fall in diamond prices amidst measures that included the temporary suspension of production at all Debswana mines and the closure of Orapa No.2 Plant and Damtshaa Mine.

The Cut 8 project involves the widening and deepening of the existing Jwaneng pit as a short-term alternative to going underground. The project will strip 713 million tonnes of waste in order to expose 75 million tonnes of ore and 95 million carats. This will take place at the rate of 122 million tonnes of waste annually. In widening, the project will result in mining out areas where current mining and plant infrastructure are situated.The project will see diamond giant De Beers and the Government of Botswana spend as much as $3 billion over the next 15 years and it will be the largest ever single capital commitment in the private sector. The project is expected to extend the life of the mine by seven years from 2017 to 2024 and optimise long-term distribution to shareholders whilst contributing to the development of Botswana. The Jwaneng mine is the largest diamond mine in the world by production value.The total cost of the project implementation stage is estimated at P3.6 billion while the total investment including all costs associated with the mining stage will be around P24 billion. This project will ensure continuity of supply of diamonds by the world’s richest diamond mine by value. Already the lifeblood of Debswana, Jwaneng mine will ensure future revenue for the shareholders, being the Government of Botswana and De Beers.Commenting on the significance of the project the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Eric Molale said: “This is one of the biggest projects to be undertaken by Debswana and will catapult Jwaneng mine towards super-pit status and treble the number of vehicles currently used at the mine.  The project also aims to leave a lasting legacy for the people of Botswana through the creation of employment opportunities for Batswana”.At its peak the Cut 8 project will employ around 1 000 workers.Previously Debswana embarked on big projects which were the Orapa 2000 Project, which was built at an estimated cost of Pl.4billion and was able to double the annual diamond output at the Orapa mine. Another project was at the Jwaneng mine and was named the Aquarium Project and it was expected to improve the recovery efficiency at Jwaneng by up to 97.5 percent.In overall terms, both the Orapa 2000 Extension and the Aquarium Projects have placed Botswana’s diamond mines at the leading edge of technology, efficiency, and productivity. 
“This project affirms Jwaneng’s unparalleled status as the richest diamond mine, by value, in the world,” De Beers Managing Director (MD) Gareth Penny said.

The extension will require the removal of more than 700-million tons of waste between 2010 and 2024, exposing another 78-million tons of diamond-bearing ore and deepening the Jwaneng pit to a depth of 650m.
Penny said that diamond demand is expected to increase in the long term, especially as more high net-worth individuals emerge in the developing markets of China and India. “At the same time, there have been no new major diamond discoveries in more than a decade, and the growing demand is likely to significantly outpace what is forecast to be lower levels of diamond supply for many years to come,” Penny said.The mining of waste material is expected to start next month and will be completed by 2017.Currently Debswana has called for an expression of interest for provision of an operations village. The operations village has been designed to high quality international standards and will provide up market motel style accommodation that is ideally suited to people living in outlying districts and greater Botswana. The project will see the development of up to 700 accommodation units and other ancillary facilities.By NCHIDZI SMARTS

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