Developing Diamond Deposits in Mauritania
North Africa Journal
December 27, 1999
Tunis - Dia Met Minerals Ltd. reported progress on its joint venture exploration
project to discover and develop diamond deposits in Mauritania. In 1998, joint
venturer Ashton Mining of Australia discovered the first diamonds and kimberlites
reported from the Reguibat Shield in Mauritania. The joint venture, announced on
May 3, 1999, now incorporates 20 granted exploration licenses covering
approximately 234,000 sq km of virgin archean terrain, an area larger than the
Slave Craton in northern Canada.
Subsequent work has confirmed that the region is prospective for economic
diamond deposits. Kimberlite indicator minerals with compositions similar to those
found as inclusions within diamonds have been located on most of the licenses,
which are widespread over the Reguibat Shield. These diamond indicator minerals
include chrome diopside, chromite, group I eclogitic garnets and G10 pyrope
garnets of equivalent compositions to those known to be associated with high
grade diamond mines worldwide including the Lac de Gras area of Canada's
Northwest Territories.
Under the terms of the Joint Venture agreement with Ashton, Dia Met is committed
to exploration expenditures of US$2.5 million by 31 March 2000, of which it is
estimated that US$1.9 million will be spent by December 31, 1999. Dia Met may
acquire up to 49 per cent of Ashton's equity in the project by staged expenditures
of up to US$10 million by March 2003. The Mauritanian Government has a 10 per
cent equity interest in some of the tenements included in the joint venture.
Although Ashton is the operator of the project, Dia Met has the controlling vote on
programs and budgets while solely funding exploration and development.
Dia Met Minerals Ltd. is a publicly traded mineral exploration and development
company with a primary focus on diamonds.
Publication Date: December 22, 1999
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