GemTalk. Diavik 4th Quarter 2015 Features

Transcription

1 Diavik 4th Quarter 2015 Features

2 A dazzling find for Diavik The Diavik diamond mine has unearthed its largest rough diamond to date, a carat gem named The Diavik Foxfire. The landmark gem is being introduced to the world in an appropriately prestigious way, with a special preview at Kensington Palace in London. After this royal debut, it will be sent to Rio Tinto Diamonds sales and marketing office in Antwerp for careful assessment. Rio Tinto Diamonds managing director, Jean-Marc Lieberherr, said the diamond was a true miracle of nature and underscored the importance of the Diavik diamond mine in the context of the global diamond industry. Also showcased at Kensington Palace, in photographs and words, was the wonderful Diavik story shining the light on the empathetic relationship between a modern mining company, the land and its people. It is likely that the record-breaking rough will yield at least one very large polished diamond with its ultimate destiny in an heirloom piece of jewellery. The Diavik Foxfire takes its reference from a term used in Canadian folklore, to describe the luminescent Northern Lights resembling the brush of fox tails in the sky.

3 on schedule and A21on budget The first season of A21 rockfill dike construction is complete at Diavik. And it s on schedule, on budget and a big success. One of the biggest construction aspects of the $US350 million project is crushing rock. A21 will require three million tonnes of crushed rock and we are ahead of plan. Other work done through September included building roads and laydown areas, dewatering/dredging pipeline construction, dredging, and north and south embankment construction. The latter being work planned for Most importantly, the work has been completed safely. A big focus for the A21 team, and its contractors, is working on the water and vehicle interactions. It s been a very successful first year, said A21 Project Director Denton Henkelman. We ve got an integrated project, one which has the A21 team working with many other departments, including fixed plant, and health, safety and environment, he added. Looking ahead, rock crushing will continue, with next summer seeing more dredging and dike construction. Project completion and first ore is scheduled for late Diavik water licence renewed The Diavik Diamond Mine has had its water licence renewed by the Government of the Northwest Territories for a further eight years, covering the remaining period of commercial production expected for the mine. The licence has reconfirmed existing environmental limits and added engineering conditions new to the Northwest Territories. Diavik operates to the highest environmental standards and has a 15-year track record of protecting the waters of Lac de Gras during construction and operation, said Diavik president Marc Cameron. We are pleased to have this licence renewed to allow us to complete mining at Diavik.

4 Diavik completes processed kimberlite storage project Among Diavik s key civil structures is its processed kimberlite containment facility, or PKC. A lined, engineered structure, and one which is encircled by a rockfill dam, it is the mine s permanent safe storage area for waste rock generated by processing kimberlite. Located in a valley created by glaciation, it initially included two dams which have ultimately been connected forming a structure with a circumference of 5.6 kilometres. In November 2015, the PKC construction team completed a multi-year, five metre dam raise. Known as phase 6, this included rock placement, embankment sloping, heat-welded liner installation, and bedding material placement. For the construction work, Diavik focused on hiring northern workers. Overall, 84 northerners gained seasonal employment. Over the past three years, total hiring was 63 per cent northern of which 42% was northern Aboriginal. As the mine continues to process ore from the A154 and A418 orebodies, and with A21 ore due in 2018, there is one more raise planned for the PKC. Throughout operations, geotechnical monitoring includes collecting data on water levels, seepage, and quality. Once processing is complete, the PKC will be capped, closing a structure that has gained little limelight but one which is clearly a major part of the site; without it Diavik could not operate. The PKC dam varies between 18m and 48m high and holds 25.7 million tonnes of processed kimberlite and will be modified to store a total of 45.2 million tonnes. Instrumentation includes: Thermistors at 45 locations monitor ground temperature (design includes frozen foundation) Slope inclinometers at 4 locations monitor lateral deformation in the dam embankments Piezometers at 25 locations monitor upstream and embankment pressure Flow meters at 9 locations monitor seepage Communities bring traditional knowledge Local communities, many of which are Aboriginal, have always been a part of how Diavik operates. A community-based program focused on traditional knowledge is the most recent example. For the program, the group gathered at a seasonal summer camp located at Lac de Gras near the Diavik mine. The purpose of the study, a requirement of the Diavik water licence, was to monitor fish health using traditional knowledge indicators and to monitor water quality. Fish were caught, cleaned, inspected, cooked and tasted. Participants shared traditional knowledge of the Lac de Gras area and spoke about the water and the fish. It was a cross-cultural, integrated learning experience which combined traditional knowledge and science; a fish biologist and Diavik staff attended to demonstrate water quality sampling and fish biology and testing. Participants were interviewed and a video, entitled 'We fish today, for fish tomorrow' has been produced.

5 Jewellers wowed by Diavik visit For Lisa and Marc Bridge, an opportunity to visit the Canadian tundra and see where many of the beautiful diamonds they promote are mined was one they quickly jumped at. The fifth-generation family members of the US jewellery company, Ben Bridge, travelled to the Diavik diamond mine in September as guest presenters for Diavik Days, an event that thanks employees of its mine site and its Yellowknife operations. The four-day event incorporates mine tours, games, events, prizes, displays and presentations. Lisa and Marc were invited to speak to the Diavik employees about how their diamonds find a home in the US jewellery market. I have shared with friends, associates and customers about the Diavik Diamond Mine for years, so getting to see it myself was an absolute thrill, said Lisa as she described the details of the visit in her company s blog page, paying particular tribute to the impressive safety procedures that underpin the operations of the mine. The feat of building such an impressive mine is only magnified by its remote location. The feat of building such an impressive mine is only magnified by its remote location. All of the effort that goes into unearthing a beautiful, sparkling diamond is staggering. The rarity and the effort make each diamond that much more special and valuable.