Firestone holds first rough diamond tender

Hosting its very first rough diamond tender, that which is outside the De Beers framework, Firestone Diamonds presented around 14,500 carats of diamonds for sale in Botswana. The sale is slated from November 29-december 9, 2010. The company believes this tender offers an open opportunity to local and international buyers to pick up diamonds directly sourced from Botswana and marks a new boost to Botswana’s diamond trading platform. Of the diamond on sale, 2,500 carats of diamonds are sourced from the BK11 mine in Botswana and 12,000 carats from the Liqhobong mine in Lesotho, reports say.

As reports suggest the company has projected to host a cycle of 10 tenders in 2011 and sell 40,000 to 50,000 carats per tender (after both its mines reach full production.), and generate around $5 million from each tender.