A small three-week-old mining company has found a rare 235-carat diamond in a South African mine that had been shut after its previous owners went bankrupt. The value of the 235-carat diamond has not yet been determined.
The company, Nare Diamonds, discovered the diamond on Thursday in the Schmidtsdrift mine, near Kimberley, which is South Africa's diamond center. The stone is larger than a golf ball.
"The large-sized gemstone is octahedron in shape and of very good quality, according to a third-party assessor," Lonrho Africa, an investor in Nare, said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange. Lonrho, which is based in Britain, purchased 17 percent of Nare on April 11.
Charles Mostert, Nare's chief executive, said in the statement, "This is a substantial find as diamonds of this size are a very rare occurrence." Previously, diamonds at the mine averaged 1.14 carats, Lonrho said.
Later this year, Nare plans to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange's small cap market. It has three other diamond projects. The Schmidtsdrift mine's previous owners shut it three years ago, Nare said.
The value of the stone is still being determined. It is expected to be put up for sale in the next few months.
De Beers discovered the largest diamond ever found in 1905. That diamond, the Cullinan, weighs more than 3,000 carats and is now part of the British crown jewels, which are kept in the Tower of London.
Hoya Saxa