Jwaneng diamond mine

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The Jwaneng diamond mine is the richest diamond mine in the world, and is located in south-central Botswana about 170 kilometers (110 miles) west of the city of Gaborone, in the Naledi river valley of the Kalahari. Jwaneng, meaning "a place of small stones", is owned by Debswana, a partnership between the De Beers company and the government of Botswana. It is the second youngest of four mines operated by the company, having begun operations in 1982.

Jwaneng is of open pit construction. The mine produces 9.3 million tons per year of ore and an additional 37 million tons per year of waste rock. The mine is located on three kimberlite pipes that converge near the surface, covering 520,000 square metres at ground level. In 2003, the mine produced 14.3 million carats (2860 kg) of diamond. The recoverable ore grade at the mine is about 1.25 carats per ton (250 mg/t). As of 2005, known reserves will allow production at current levels to continue for 27 years. The high rate of diamond extraction, combined with high quality diamonds fetching excellent per weight prices, make the Jwaneng diamond mine the richest diamond mine in the world by value of recovered diamonds.

Jwaneng employs over 2,100. The mine also owns and operates a local hospital and Jwaneng Airport. The mine maintains an ISO 14001 certificate for environmental compliance, being the first mine in Botswana to achieve this certification in 2000. Jwaneng is known for its excellent safety record, having maintained a 5-star NOSA rating since 1986 and winning multiple national and international safety awards.

[edit] Discovery

A 2006 article in HighTechMagazine reported that the mine, "was discovered after termites looking for water brought to the surface mineral grains from the massive diamond deposit, one of the world's richest."