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Lesotho
Mothae Mine

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 Location:
133 km EN from Maseru, Lesotho

  Regional Office:
34 Bagot Road
Subiaco
Western Australia, Australia
6008
Phone  ...  Subscription required
Fax+61-8-9380-9314
WebsiteWeb
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  • Overview
  • Owners
  • Geology
  • Mining
  • Processing
  • Production
  • Reserves
  • Costs & Financials
  • Personnel
  • Filings & News

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Overview

StageProduction
Mine TypeOpen Pit
Commodities
  • Diamond
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Production Start...
Mine Life20 years (as of Jan 1, 2019)


Owners

Source: p. 107
CompanyInterestOwnership
Government of the Kingdom of Lesotho 30 % Indirect
Lucapa Diamond Company Ltd. 70 % Indirect
Mothae Diamonds (Pty) Ltd. (operator) 100 % Direct
Lucapa Diamond Company Limited holds a 70% interest in Mothae Diamonds (Pty) Limited which has a 100% interest in the Mothae Diamond Project. The remaining 30% of Mothae Diamonds is held by the Government of Lesotho.

Contractors

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Deposit Type

  • Kimberlite


Summary:

The Mothae kimberlite intrusion is a kimberlite diatreme, or pipe, which was the feeder to a now eroded kimberlite volcano.

The Mothae kimberlite is situated on the southern edge of the Kaapvaal Craton, which extends through central, eastern and north-eastern South Africa, into southern Zimbabwe and southeastern Botswana, and incorporates most of Swaziland.

As the diamondiferous Northern Lesotho Kimberlite Field is in the Kaapvaal Craton, it conforms to ‘Clifford’s Rule’, which states that diamondiferous kimberlites tend to occur in geological regions that have been tectonically stable since the Archaean.

The Archaean basement in Lesotho is entirely covered by the flat-lying Paleozoic to Mesozoic Karoo Supergroup which reaches a thickness of approximately 4 km in Lesotho.

The surface geology within the Mothae license area comprises amygdaloidal and nonamygdaloidal Mesozoic (180 Ma) Drakensberg Group flood basalt, into which the Mothae kimberlite has intruded. The average elevation of the Mothae kimberlite is approximately 2,900 mamsl and the thickness of the basalt into which it is emplaced is estimated to be of the order of 1,000 m, although basalt thickness on the property may locally reach up to 1,400 m. Basalts are underlain by Beaufort Group sediments of the Karoo Supergroup.

Kimberlite emplacement during the Cretaceous Period was widespread throughout southern Africa and was probably associated with tectonic trigge ........


Mining Methods

  • Truck & Shovel / Loader


Summary:

Lucapa envisages mining the kimberlite in two phases. Phase 1 will include the weathered kimberlite material at the top of the pipe while mainly the underlying harder and unweathered kimberlite is planned to be mined during Phase 2.

Mining by conventional open pit methods such as drill and blast followed by load and haul will be employed. Drilling and blasting will be performed on 10 m benches, as will loading of the blasted material. Where possible in the near surface weathered zone, “free dig” mining will be carried out (i.e. without drilling and blasting). Ripping by bulldozer may also be employed in transitional kimberlite to reduce the quantity of drilling and blasting required.

The envisaged scale of mining at the Mothae deposit is relatively small with a peak total material movement of 8 Mtpa to 9 Mtpa. The annual processing plant feed requirement is approximately 1.1 Mtpa (2019) ramping up to approximately 2.2 Mtpa (2022) until end of life of mine.


Crushing and Grinding
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Processing

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Summary:

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Production:
2020 was a disjointed year for Mothae as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the mining operations being suspended from the end of March 2020 to the beginning of October 2020.

CommodityUnits202120202019
Diamond carats  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
All production numbers are expressed as mineral.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Operational Metrics:

Metrics202120202019
Tonnes processed  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required1,156,093 t
Annual processing capacity  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required1.1 Mt
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Reserves at December 31, 2021:

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained carats
Indicated 11.5 Mt Diamond 3.1 cpht 0.36 M carats
Inferred 56.1 Mt Diamond 2.4 cpht 1.37 M carats
Total Resource 67.6 Mt Diamond 2.6 cpht 1.73 M carats

Commodity Production Costs:

CommodityUnits2021
Cash costs (sold) Diamond USD  ......  Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Financials:

Units202120202019
Revenue M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
EBITDA M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required



Heavy Mobile Equipment:

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 17, 2022
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Staff:

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
Subscription required Subscription required Subscription required 2021

Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
Corporate Presentation 2022
Quarterly Report 2022
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
Technical Report 2017
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Subscription required - Subscription is required.

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