Known as one of the most precious and famous gems in the world, the diamond is, without a doubt, the object of desire for anyone who loves jewelry. Although, before becoming a beautiful piece of jewelry, it must go through a long process from its extraction, rough marketing, carving and finally retail. Join us to find out what they are. the world’s largest diamond producersaccording to the “NS Energy” website.
1- Russia: Possessor of the largest diamond deposits in the world, this country, leads the ranking of the largest diamond producers in the world, thanks to its more than 12 open pit mines. For which, it is also the main exporter of rough diamonds by volume, with approximately 40 million carats per year.
Despite knowing the existence of diamonds in Russia, exploitation would not begin until after World War IIsince the Soviet government wanted to guarantee the independence of this important mineral, since, at that time, the diamond trade was controlled by the De Beers company, which monopolized production to control market prices.
Currently, most mining operations are concentrated in the Siberian region of Yakutia, where the three largest mines in the world are located, including the Mir mine, which is the largest mine in the world with a depth of 525 meters and a diameter of 1,200 meters; and is the third among the ten main diamond deposits in the world . Being the state company ALROSA who has control of 90% of the country’s production.
According to the latest estimates Russia would have reserves in the order of 973 million caratsof which 608 million are known reserves.
2- Botswana: this african country it is the first producer of diamonds in terms of value and the second in terms of volume. The exploitation of diamonds began in 1971 and the highest yield mines were discovered in the 1980s, currently having seven first-class mines, among them, the main ones are Orapa and Jwaneng, the latter producing an average of 10 million carats per year.
Botswana’s diamonds are larger and of better quality than those mined in Russia and make up 25% of its GDP. To give us an idea of its level of production and quality of its diamonds, in 2013 alone 23.2 million carats were extracted and The second largest diamond in the world was recently extracted from the Karowe mine, named Sewelô, a 1,758-carat gem found by the Canadian company Lucara Diamond Corp. Although, it is nothing compared to the 90 million carats of reserves that it is estimated to have under its soil, according to data from the StatInvestor website for 2017.
The main diamond mining company is the DEBSWANA DIAMOND COMPANY, a joint venture between the South African company De Beers and the Botswana government.
3- Democratic Republic of the Congo: Despite a sharp drop in recent years, this country has remained in third place among the world’s largest diamond producers in volume. On the other hand, it should be mentioned that it is the country in Africa that has the largest diamond reserves, according to StatInvestor 150 million carats approximately, although the 12 million carats that are extracted annually from its soil are mostly using artisanal techniques and not by large mining companies.
According to estimates, 600,000 miners exploit small alluvial mines in an artisanal way, while the only commercial diamond producer is Miniere de Bakwange (MIBA), a joint venture between the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Belgian company Sibeka, in in which De Beers has a 20% stake.
4- Australia: known as the leading producer of colored diamondsthis country is famous for its high quality purple, pink and red diamonds, as well as some of the best yellow diamonds in the world, although only 5% of the diamonds mined are of gem quality.
Australia began diamond mining in 1981 and most of the diamonds mined in its soil come from the Argyle deposit, a mine located in the west of the country and which is the largest in Australia. From it, approximately 12 million carats are extracted per year. Nevertheless, its reserves are estimated to be 120 million carats according to StatInvestor.
5- Canada: Diamond mining in Canada began in 1998 and currently has four active mines: Diavik, Snap Lake, Victor and Ekati, the latter being the first in operation and the largest in the country. Although there are currently other mines in development stages such as Stornoway Diamonds and GahchoKué.
Their diamonds are very popular among buyers as they are considered «Conflict Free», that is, they do not finance mafia structures or civil conflicts and comply with environmental regulations. On the other hand, its diamond production in 2013 was 10.6 million carats and increased to 23 million in 2018. However, the difficult climatic conditions, the remote locations of the deposits and the depletion of the ore have forced the closure of some mines.
An interesting fact is that in October 2018 it was found in the Diavik mine, located in the northeastern territories of Canada, the largest diamond in north america. It is a 552-carat gem-quality yellow diamond, discovered by the Dominion Diamon Mines company.
These five countries represent the largest diamond producers in the world and in 2013 accounted for almost 76% of world production. However, there are countries that also contribute to the world diamond market such as Zimbabwe, Angola, South Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, Ivory Coast, Brazil, British Guinea, Sierra Leone and Venezuela; which together produce 99% of the world’s diamonds.