Name of the Project
Karowe underground expansion project.

Location
North-central Botswana.

Project Owner/s
Canadian diamond mining company Lucara Diamond Corp.
 
Project Description
The operating Karowe openpit diamond mine is a conventional load-and-haul operation, with operations expected to terminate in mid-2025 at an elevation of 713 metres above sea level (masl). 

The underground development is expected to extend Karowe's mine life beyond 2040 and is designed to support a 2.7-million-tonne-a-year mining operation and processing plant, which will be focused on the South Lobe of the AK06 kimberlite.

The project will involve the extraction of an estimated 400 vertical metres of the South Lobe from 310 masl (700 m below surface) to the bottom of the depleted openpit about 710 masl (300 m below surface).

The project will include an 8.5 m completed internal-diameter production shaft, about 767 m deep and equipped to hoist a nominal 7 400 t/d of ore and additional development waste; and a 6 m completed internal-diameter unequipped ventilation shaft with a planned final depth of 729 m.

Total life-of-mine diamond recoveries are estimated at 6.8-million carats.

Potential Job Creation
None stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Preproduction capital costs for the underground project are estimated at $683-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Capital will be expended over an eight-year preproduction construction and commissioning period until the second half of 2027. Full-scale underground production is planned for the first half of 2028.

Latest Developments
Lucara Diamond Corp reported in December 2024 that substantial progress had been made in shaft sinking and lateral development, successfully connecting the production and ventilation shafts. The critical-path ventilation shaft remained ahead of the revised July 2023 schedule.

Capital expenditure in 2025 for the underground expansion project (UGP) is projected to reach up to $115 million, primarily allocated to completing shaft sinking to final depth, equipping the production shaft and advancing station development. Surface activities will focus on installing and cold commissioning permanent winders. Additionally, the underground lateral development contract will be tendered and underground equipment acquisitions finalised.

Sustaining capital of up to $13 million will be directed towards replacing and refurbishing key asset components, expanding the storage facility and carrying out pit steepening activities to support continued extraction of South Lobe material from the openpit in 2025.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
JDS Energy & Mining Inc (technical report).

Contact Details for Project Information
Lucara Diamond Corp, tel +1 604 674 0272 or email info@lucaradiamond.com.