Botswana Diamonds takes over Sekaka
The move also takes away three important mining licenses from competitor Petra Diamonds.

Botswana Diamonds (LON: BOD) said Monday it completed the acquisition of Sekaka, the exploration vehicle owned by contested rival Petra Diamonds (LON: PDL) that held three prospecting licenses in the country's central Kalahari game reserve. In one of its licenses, Sekaka selected the KX36 kimberlite tube, located approximately 70 km from Gem Diamonds' Ghaghoo Mine and 260 km northwest of Botswana's capital, Gaborone. Sekaka also had a recently built, purpose built bulk sample facility that included dense media crushing, washing and separation circuits and x-ray recovery modules within a secured area. The acquisition includes an extensive database that has been built over 15 years of exploration. Botswana Diamonds believes that the information contained in the database will be of material support for future kimberlite exploration activities in the mining dependent country, the second largest diamond producer in the world. "We are pleased that this acquisition is now complete. This paves the way for us to explore commercial development options for the KX36 and begin evaluating the extensive database in conjunction with ours to discover more kimberlites in prime diamond properties," said Chairman John Teeling in a media statement. The South African country's diamond exports fell 42% to $ 1.49 billion in the first nine months of this year as production fell 29% to 12.3 million carats due to restrictions related to covids. Botswana's mining sector provides a fifth of GDP and 80% of the country's foreign exchange income. Petra Diamonds, the previous owner of Sekaka, has struggled for over two years. Due to its weak financial position, the company was forced to dispose of non-core assets and put itself up for sale in June. The company reversed the decision in October and instead opted for a debt restructuring through equity. The deal would mean that the existing shareholders would only own 9% of the company. Petra also deals with allegations of human rights abuses at his Williamson mine in Tanzania, due to the actions of his security officers. The company recently reported a 36% decrease in revenue and a net loss of $ 223 million (£ 168.7 million) for the year ended June 30 as the coronavirus pandemic exacerbated the company's financial troubles.





