27-09-2017
Lucara Diamond Corp has sold the 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona diamond to Graff Diamonds for US$53 million, or US$47,777 per carat. The rough diamond is the second-largest in the history of the trade and the biggest that any company has unearthed in Botswana, Lucara said on 25 September 2017.
Lucara recovered the rough from its Karowe mine in Botswana in November 2015, and then failed to sell the stone at a Sotheby’s auction in London in June 2016, where its estimated price was US$70 million or higher.
Lucara's president and CEO William Lamb said: “The discovery of Lesedi La Rona was a company defining event for Lucara. It solidified the potential and rareness of the diamonds recovered at the Karowe mine. We took our time to find a buyer who would take the diamond through its next stage of evolution. The price paid is also an improvement on the highest bid received at the Sotheby's auction in June 2016.” A total of three diamonds Lucara recovered at Karowe in November 2015 have sold for a combined value of over US$130 million, according to the miner.
“The stone will tell us its story — it will dictate how it wants to be cut, and we will take the utmost care to respect its exceptional properties,” said Laurence Graff, founder and chairman of Graff diamonds. “This is a momentous day in my career, and I am privileged to be given the opportunity to honour the natural beauty of Lesedi La Rona.”
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