After 23 years of operations and more than 150 million carats of rough diamonds produced before exhausting its economic reserves, Rio Tinto’s Diavik diamond mine in the Northwest Territories of Canada has celebrated its final day of production. “Forty years ago, there were very few people who believed there were diamonds in Canada – even fewer could have foreseen how…
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Burgundy Diamond Mines lays off hundreds at Ekati
Burgundy Diamond Mines has decided to temporarily suspend open pit mining at its Point Lake operation, one of two active sites at its Ekati diamond mine in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The miner said the operation had become “sub-economic” due to a weak diamond market. The decision has led to the layoffs of hundreds of employees and contractors, as…
Read MoreDiavik mine starts underground production
Rio Tinto’s Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories has moved into commercial production at its A21 underground operation, which was developed beneath the previously mined A21 open pit. The construction of the underground mine involved the development of over 1,800 meters of underground tunnels to access the orebody. With safety as the core focus, the miner noted that there…
Read MoreRio Tinto confirms Diavik plane crash
Further details are still being compiled, but Rio Tinto has confirmed that a plane carrying a number of its workers has crashed on its way to the Diavik diamond mine in the Northwest Territories, Canada. The miner said January 24 that the crash occurred near Fort Smith. It did not release the number of fatalities or the identities of the…
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