TIDMBRD
RNS Number : 1938K
BlueRock Diamonds PLC
09 April 2018
Note: References to "$" in this announcement refer to US
dollars.
9 April 2018
BlueRock Diamonds PLC
("BlueRock" or the "Company" or "BRD")
Q1 results and 2018 guidance reiterated
BlueRock Diamonds plc, the AIM listed diamond mining company
which owns and operates the Kareevlei Diamond Mine in the Kimberley
region of South Africa ("Kareevlei"), announces the results of its
Q1 2018 production and reiterates its guidance for 2018.
Q1 2018 highlights
-- Average revenue per carat $378 (FY 2017: $362)
-- Revenue per tonne processed $14.36 (FY 2017: $8.88)
-- Grade of 3.8 cpht (FY 2017: 2.45 cpht)
-- Carats sold 1,563 (Q1 2017: 92)
-- Volume processed 38,781 tonnes (Q1 2017: 9,310 tonnes)
Key performance indicators - Q1 2018 compared with 2017
Quarter Tender
% annual volume Carats cpht $/carat
Volume(1) (1) (2) (2) (2) (2)
2017
- 1 9,310 6.1% 4,780 92 1.92 161
2017
- 2 31,033 20.3% 27,106 451 1.66 352
2017
- 3 63,163 41.2% 56,486 1,275 2.26 344
2017
- 4 49,641 32.4% 49,666 1,567 3.16 391
2017 153,147 100.0% 138,038 3,385 2.45 362
2018
- 1 38,781 14.1% 41,115 1,563 3.80 378
Notes
1) Based on calendar quarters. The percentage for 2018 is based
on the full year 2018 guidance target of 275,000 tonnes.
2) Based on the period between tenders which usually take place
in the third or fourth week of each month. There is no tender in
December. The total carats produced in FY 2017 was 3,728.
Tender results
A total of 1,563 carats were sold in Q1 2018 representing 16.5%
of the lower end of the Company's guidance for 2018. This is
consistent with seasonal expectations as Q1 production will always
be hampered by the extended Christmas and New Year break coupled
with the Northern Cape rainy season experienced in the first
quarter of each year.
The average price per carat of $378 (FY 2017: $362) reinforces
the Company's position as one of the top ten highest value per
carat diamond mines in the world, reflecting the high quality of
the Kareevlei stones and the high percentage recovery of gem
stones.
Production and recovery
38,781 tonnes were processed in Q1 2018, which is over four
times greater than Q1 2017 and represents 14.1% of our production
target for 2018. This is in line with the Company's seasonal
expectations as described above.
Recovered grade continues to improve and a grade of 3.8 cpht was
achieved for the first quarter which is a significant improvement
on FY 2017 (2.45 cpht) and Q4 2017 (3.16 cpht).
Revenue per processed tonne
Revenue per processed tonne for the first quarter was $14.36 (FY
2017: $8.88), based on tender periods. Quarter 1 represents the
period from the end of the November tender to the end of the March
tender. Whilst this is a derivative measure (reliant upon other
factors) this remains a key indicator of Kareevlei's
profitability.
Production plans
Following the Company's recent fundraising announced on 19 March
2018, BlueRock plans to start mining K1 in the second half of April
2018. Initially, the top calcretised level will be removed and it
is expected that the Company will be mining kimberlite in May for
processing in June 2018. For reference, K1 has an inferred grade of
6.3 cpht compared to that of K2 of 4.5 cpht. The Company expects
that over time, this will lead to an increase in overall grade. K2
will continue to be mined as K1 is developed and bulk sampling is
continued on K5, giving the flexibility to ensure consistent supply
of good quality kimberlite to the processing plant.
The emphasis remains on maximising the value of Kareevlei and
accordingly, the Company has decided not to pursue the Jubilee
project that had previously been announced and have thus let the
option lapse on this project given that the results of initial
testing suggested a low-grade mine. The Company will continue to
seek and assess other opportunities as they arise.
2018 guidance
Our 2018 guidance remains unchanged, a summary of which is set
out below:
2018 guidance 2017
------------------- -------------- --------
Volume (tonnes) 275,000 153,147
------------------- -------------- --------
Average grade
(cpht) 3.5-4.5 2.45
------------------- -------------- --------
Carats 9,500-12,500 3,728
------------------- -------------- --------
Revenue per carat
($/carat) 362 362
------------------- -------------- --------
Adam Waugh, Chief Executive Officer of BlueRock Diamonds,
commented:
"Q1 2018 has continued the significant progress that was made in
2017. We remain on track to achieve the parameters set out in our
guidance announced in March 2018 and reiterated here.
We are excited to start mining K1 and expect that this will have
a beneficial effect on our average grades over time and hence our
overall profitability."
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
Certain information contained in this announcement would have
been deemed inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 until the release of this
announcement.
For further information, please contact:
BlueRock Diamonds plc
Adam Waugh, CEO
awaugh@bluerockdiamonds.co.uk
David Facey, FD
dfacey@bluerockdiamonds.co.uk
SP Angel (NOMAD and Broker)
Stuart Gledhill / Lindsay Mair/Caroline Rowe
+44 (0)20 3470 0470
SVS Securities plc (Joint Broker)
Tom Curran / Ben Tadd +44 (0) 20 3700 0100
Yellow Jersey (PR and IR)
Georgia Colkin / Joe Burgess / Katie Bairsto
+44 (0) 7769 325254
About BlueRock Diamonds plc (AIM: BRD)
BlueRock is a diamond mining company with activities in the
Kimberley region of South Africa. BlueRock own a diamond processing
plant and the mining right over the Kareevlei Tenements in South
Africa.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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