Operations at Diamond Bourse of Canada likely to begin within 20 days

The Diamond Bourse of Canada is expected to be fully-operational by end-March 2010, reports say. The facility will primarily function as a diamond trading floor offering an environment of enhanced business facilities, and also as a platform for seminars and board meetings, for its members.

A technological centre is created on the trading floor with advanced systems supplied by the world’s leading diamond equipment companies. Sarin Technologies has supplied its Diamension proportion and cut grading machine and a Colibri colour grading machine; De Beers provided a Diamond Sure machine that indicates synthetic and HPHT trade diamonds; HRD Antwerp NV has given a gemmological microscope and a D Screen machine for detecting synthetic and HPHT diamonds.

Diamond certification at the Bourse is provided at a diamond grading certificate window, which is currently in operation. Members can submit diamonds for certification and collect same-day diamond grading services, reports say. Plans are in process for the Custom Bonded Warehouse to begin operations in third week of March. The warehouse will be the first of its kind for North America, where members can examine their goods or bring a customer to take a look before the goods are cleared through customs, reports say.

The first seminar at the Bourse is slated for March 12. The Royal Bank of Canada is sponsoring this seminar, which will focus on ways in which the diamond industry and financial institutions can enhance their mutual cooperation.

The Bourse was officially opened in January.