Diamond production at BHP Billiton showed a 5 percent increase and amounted to 903,000 carats during the three months that ended June 30, 2009. The mining giant attributes this increase to finding of a variety of ores as a result of the open pit and underground mining at Ekati mine. The company owns 80 percent in the mines.

However, during the entire fiscal ending June 30, 2009, diamond production showed a 4 percent drop, to 3.221 million carats.