Ore is mined using open pit mining methods from numerous small, localised alluvial gravel resources. Mining is carried out with open pit truck and shovel operations from the diamondiferous gravels after removal of overburden. The general method employed is strip mining. The paleo-channels and terraces which host the diamondiferous gravels vary in width and overburden depth and, as such are subject to varying degrees of continuity for active mining faces. Mining also encompasses rehandling and reprocessing of remnant tailings and stockpiled material. The mining fleet is consistent across these operations, with the exception of the dredging operations undertaken at Shallow Water.

A low cost mining approach is also bein followed on the Somiluana Mine in Angola and current mine plans are based on a feasibility study founded on analysis of historical Diamang data and six years of exploration and pilot production results to which appropriate planning, scheduling, and reserving methodologies have been applied that are typical for large scale alluvial mining operations in Angola.

Overburden at Somiluana comprises amorphous or silicified gravel and sand, with few or no rocks, and is easily excavated with general service excavator buckets with or without teeth. Explosives are not required. In some areas, sandier overburden requires a shallower batter angle of maximum 30° and reduced bench height. In other areas, more stable overburden with higher clay content will permit a steeper angle to perhaps 70°. Mining blocks are rarely contiguous, with undulations in gravel thicknesses, diamond grades and values. Water will often flow through the overburden on top of clays, or through the underlying gravels. Development of mining cuts requires planning for water drainages and pumping. The overburden depth varies from 6 m to greater than 50 m, and the maximum depth of overburden to be stripped will depend on the economics of each block. The average distance from the mine face to the overburden dumping area is between 800 m and 1 km and the maximum distance does not exceed 1.5 km.

The processing of gravels at the Somiluana Mine is currently undertaken in three separate movable wash plants. Following screening, the -1.6 mm material is discarded to a slimes dam, whilst the -18+1.6 mm fraction forms the feed to the downstream DMS plant. The current DMS facility is centralised with a capacity of 10 tph, and is limited to a topsize of 18 mm. The final product, an X-ray concentrate, is stored in locked containers and forwarded to the hand sorting facility where the diamonds are hand picked in a high security environment.