Rio Tinto extends life of its A21 Daivik diamond mine to Q1 of 2026

Surat : Daivik, which faced closure by 2025 is now expected to extend into the first quarter of 2026. Thanks to Rio Tinto that has announced to proceed with underground mining below  the existing A21 open pit at its Daivik diamond mine ’in the Northwest Territories of Canada.

Diavik diamond mine has been in production since 2003 and is Canada’s largest diamond mine. It yielded 6.2 million carats of rough diamonds in 2020.

According to Rio Tinto, based on the updated mine plan and production schedule including the A154N and A154S pipes, and subject to approval of the second phase of the A21 underground project, Diavik’s mine life is now expected to extend into the first quarter of 2026.

Phase 1 of underground mining of Diavik’s A21 pipe is expected to deliver an additional 1.4 million carats of rough diamonds. Current employees and contractors will be transitioned from other areas of the mine for both the construction and production phases of the project.

Diavik expects to seek approval for Phase 2 of the A21 underground project in the first half of 2024. Phase 2 is expected to deliver an additional 0.8 million carats of rough diamonds.

Sinead Kaufman, Chief Executive of Rio Tinto Minerals said: “Rio Tinto’s decision to support the underground development of the A21 pipe was prefaced on compelling industry fundamentals, our proven capacity to safely develop diamond mines in extreme conditions and a track record in competing successfully in the global diamond industry. This is good news for our employees, partners, suppliers and local communities in the Northwest Territories.”

The Diavik mine, 100 percent owned and operated by Rio Tinto, is Canada’s largest diamond mine in terms of production and since mining began in 2003 Diavik has produced over 100 million carats of rough diamonds. Construction of the A21 open pit commenced in 2015 and it was finished safely and ahead of time to commence commercial production in 2018.

The Phase 1 production target for the Diavik A21 pipe is underpinned 87% by Proved Ore Reserves and 13% by Probable Ore Reserves. The Phase 2 production target for the Diavik A21 pipe is underpinned 100% by Indicated Mineral Resources. These production targets have been scheduled from current mine designs by Competent Persons in accordance with the requirements of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Minerals Resources and Ore Reserves, 2012 Edition (the JORC code).