Burgundy Diamond Mines will open a cutting and polishing facility in Australia

RAPAPORT... Burgundy Diamond Mines will open a cutting and polishing facility in Australia to manufacture colored diamonds from its Ellendale project, as well as those of third-party suppliers.

The new factory will also include grading facilities, Burgundy said Tuesday. The miner, which bought the joint Ellendale and Blina deposits in Australia from Gibb River in March, plans to launch a focused branding campaign for the yellow diamonds the sites produce.

“Burgundy intends to extract maximum value from the natural beauty of the Ellendale stones via its own marketing initiatives, and reestablish Western Australia as a supplier of unique, high-value diamonds to luxury-goods markets worldwide,” the company noted.

The company will manufacture colored diamonds from its other mines in the future, including the Naujaat project in Canada, which produces fancy-yellow and orange diamonds. That project is currently in the bulk-sampling phase, with production set for 2022. Burgundy hopes to begin producing from Ellendale next year.

“This is an ideal opportunity to secure specialist facilities and skills as a springboard for our planned business growth, incorporating a downstream extension to our diamond strategy,” said Burgundy managing director Peter Ravenscroft. “Burgundy will use this capability to maximize the value of our own future fancy-color diamond production, and to pursue other business opportunities in this high-value segment.”

Diamond Hunting Expeditions On Hold Pending Covid 19 Travel Restrictions Being Lifted

Unfortunately our work in welcoming international diamond enthusiast into the Borneo diamond fields has had to go on hold due to the Covid 19 virus outbreak. We are looking forward to recommencing the diamond field tours once international travel restrictions are lifted and people can undertake international travel again. 

We expect that the during the lengthy duration of international visitors not being unable to undertake diamond hunting expeditions a large selection of diamonds will have been accumulated by the traditional diamond miners. This will offer a once in a lifetime opportunity, for the first wave of international diamond buyers, to purchase diamonds from a huge selection of sizes, shapes and colours.

I am very eager for the borders to reopen to international travellers so that I can be one of the first to take my pick of diamonds and add to my already impressive diamond collection. 

Diamond Hunting Expeditions 50% Off Price Reduction Aug 2014 to Nov 2014 Only

Our company has been welcoming international diamond enthusiast for several years into the Borneo diamond fields. We work to connect the local diamond miners with international buyers to assist in providing a market for their traditionally recovered diamonds. We are able to take groups of up to 4 people on a 3 night / 4 day expedition into the remote diamond fields of Borneo.

For the next 3 months between Sep 2014 and Nov 2014 we are offering special deal of only US$1,215 per person (minimum of 4 persons with twin share accommodation) for the expedition of a lifetime. That is a huge 50% discount on our normal price. 

Please hurry with your booking to avoid disappointment.

Diamonds Flooding European Market to Line Mugabe's Pockets

To no avail the fierce lobbying by Belgium failed to stop the European Union from lifting sanctions last week on the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation and now permits diamonds from Zimbabwe which are Kimberley Process (KP) certified to enter Europe from September 25 onwards. The policy shift also permits rough diamond imports from other Zimbabwe companies including Marange Resources, Mbada Diamonds, Kimberworth Investments and Diamond Mining Corporation, all of which control the nation's diamond trade.

However the U.S. still maintains its sanctions on all goods and services from entities that are financially tied to President Robert Mugabe and his associates in Zimbabwe. U.S. businesses are forbidden to trade diamonds from those firms even if the goods have accompanying KP certificates or were handled through a third party.

 

Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe and one of the leaders of the national liberation movements against white-minority rule, was elected as Prime Minister in 1980 when Southern Rhodesia was liberated from British rule and became the independent Republic of Zimbabwe. Since 2000, the Mugabe-led government embarked on a fast-track land reform program to forcefully correct the inequitable land distribution created by colonial rule. The period has been marked by economic sanctions, which after their introduction in 2002 led to the deterioration of the Zimbabwean dollar. Mugabe's policies have been condemned domestically and internationally and under his dictatorship Zimbabwe's economy is in ruins with famine, an AIDS epidemic, foreign debt and widespread unemployment plaguing the country.

 

While Mugabe lives a plush life surrounded by luxury, partly funded by his diamond mining interests, the life expectancy for Zimbabwean men has dropped to 37 years and 34 years for women, the lowest figures for any nation.

Largest Pink Diamond Ever Found Discovered in Borneo's South Kalimantan Diamond Fields

The largest Pink Diamond ever found in the history of the world was discovered in the Borneo diamond fields. Right in the same location as our Diamond Expeditions the huge Pink Diamond, given the name "Trisakti Diamond", was discovered on 26th August 1965 in an alluvial diamond deposit in the Cempaka district of Martapura.

The rough Pink Diamond weighed 166.75 carats and is to this day still the largest Pink Diamond ever discovered. Typically though the artisan miner that discovered the diamond was never paid the true value for the diamond. The Indonesian government took ownership of the Diamond and arranged for it to be sent to Amsterdam to be cut by the famous diamond cutter Jospeh Asscher.

 

The diamond was cleaved into several parts and the largest part was fashioned into a 50.53 carat emerald cut Pink Diamond. After the diamond was cut it was returned to the Indonesian government where it was locked away from public view and has never been seen again since.

The artisan miner that discover the Diamond, Haji Shukri, made several trips to Jakarta in an attempt to find out what happened to the Diamond and to get payment for it but he never received anything further from the government. Hence the need for Fair Trade to prevent this all too common occurrence from repeating!

The Pink Diamond That Got Away

I was just contemplating the beautiful rough pink diamond that I was so close to acquiring during my last trip into the southern Borneo diamond fields. One of the artisanal diamond miners uncovered a fantastic 1.3 carat rough pink diamond while I was in the area and it was offered to me to buy. The stone was a deep pink colour and was oval shaped with a course outer skin. With careful cutting the weight could have been maintained to around 0.8 carat and produced a spectacular oval shaped pink diamond.

We agreed on a purchase price of US$20,000 however I needed to dash across to Jakarta to get the cash. I jumped on a plane for the 45 minute flight to Jakarta and raced to the bank to get the money however on my way back to the airport I was informed the stone had been sold to someone else. As you can imagine I was very disappointed!

The local artisanal diamond miners are uncovering rare pink and blue diamond's every once in a while so I will get another chance before too long to add a nice pink to our diamond inventory.

Latest Diamond Hunting Expedition Borneo

The current low economic situation around the world has contributed to provide better prices and larger range of diamonds available in the Borneo diamond fields. Because of the reduced number of visitors coming out of the developed countries in search of diamonds a back log of diamonds have built up providing a much larger selection of diamonds at competitive Fair Trade pricing.

To beat the rush of diamond buyers cashing in on the buyers market situation contact us now to arrange your diamond hunting expedition. Visit our website at www.natural-colour-diamonds.com.au for further information and also to browse our web-store for a selection of quality Fair Trade diamonds.        

What is Fairtrade & What Are Fair Trade Diamonds?

Fair Trade & Fair Trade Diamonds

According to the Fairtrade Organization website http://www.fairtrade.net/ “Not all trade is fair! Farmers and workers at the beginning of the chain don’t always get a fair share of the benefits of trade. Fair Trade enables consumers to put this right. It is based on a partnership between producers and consumers by offering producers, at the start of the chain, a better deal to allow them the opportunity to improve their lives. Fair Trade also offers consumers a powerful way to reduce poverty through their every day shopping.”

Fair Trade Diamonds in the context of the Fairtrade definition, is providing the very poor traditional diamond miners, at the start of the diamond supply chain, a fair deal for their work. Commonly traditional diamond miners, in the Borneo diamond fields, survive on less than $200 per month to provide for their families. In complete contrast, flashy diamond jewellers in developed countries sell these hard found diamonds for tens of thousand of dollars making huge profit margins.

Currently there are no Fair Trade standards applicable to diamonds. The companies working in this field are not yet able to gain recognition for there contributions in assisting the people and communities at the beginning of the diamond supply chain. Our company is pushing for standards to be introduced, so that the people living in poverty in the various diamond fields around the world, can have a opportunity for receiving improved benefits.

 

We are proud of the fact that our company practices the principles and concepts of Fair Trade diamonds, in all trade that we undertake with the people and communities at the start of the diamond supply chain. Our profit margins are much lower than other less ethical organisations, but we are satisfied being able to contribute to a better life for the communities located in the Borneo diamond fields.

Fair Trade Diamonds Hunting Expeditions – Borneo

Diamond Hunting Expeditions – Borneo

Our company has been welcoming international diamond enthusiast for several years into the Borneo diamond fields. We work to connect the local diamond miners with international buyers to assist in providing a market for their traditionally recovered diamonds. We are able to take groups of up to 4 people on a 3 night / 4 day expedition into the remote diamond fields of Borneo.

During the expedition you will spend several days visiting the traditional diamond mines and villages around the diamond fields and have the opportunity to view and purchase many rough and cut diamonds. You are assured to come across many diamonds of great quality and unique fancy colours at prices that can be a bargain. With intermittent breaks trying the local cuisine, sightseeing around the diamond fields and socializing with the friendly locals, you are bound to have a very unique experience enjoyed by very few people, which you will talk about for years to come.

Itinerary

The expeditions are ideally completed over 4 days in either the west Borneo or south Borneo diamond fields. We will meet and greet you at Jakarta international airport and then escort you across to Borneo on a 1.5 hour flight. Once in Borneo a hire car with driver is arranged and we travel overland to a local hotel near the diamond fields, for check in and commencement of the expedition.

In the diamond field region there is plenty of opportunity to walk around the traditional diamond mining operations, taking photographs, meeting the local native miners and of course viewing many hands full of diamonds for sale. Many of the poverty stricken locals will approach you, while walking around the dirt tracks in the diamond mining areas with diamonds for sale, and some good bargains can be found.

There are several different diamond miner cooperatives, that work their own mining areas, who’s leader is responsible to find buyers for all the diamonds that they discover. After viewing many diamonds, both rough and locally cut, from the people on the village streets, you are then invited to attend the traditional homes of the various diamond mining cooperative leaders. In their homes you will sit politely and meet many of the diamond miners working in each cooperative, who will pull from their pockets many packages of diamonds to view. It is common to have 10 to 15 diamond miners lined up showing you their diamonds.

You will need to take your time to assess each package of diamonds making note of diamonds that are of interest to you. This process may take several hours and requires weighing each stone of interest, examination by loop and taking pictures and making notes about each diamonds carat, cut, colour and clarity etc. Once you have purchased all the diamonds of interest from this group, or taken the contact phone numbers for diamonds that may be worth a second look, it is time to move onto the traditional homes of other diamond mining cooperative leaders.

After several days of sightseeing around the diamond mines, enjoying the local cuisine, socializing with the friendly locals and visiting traditional homes to view and purchase diamonds, the expedition will be concluded. We will assist you to check out of your hotel, travel overland to the airport and then fly the 1.5 hour return trip to Jakarta where we will say farewell.

Tips

Many of the diamond miners can speak only the local dialects and very little English. Your expedition guide speaks German, French, Spanish, Italian and English languages as well as the local Indonesian language, and will assist to translate between your self and the diamond sellers. However it is common that much of the negotiations for purchasing diamonds is done in broken English and using calculators or pen and paper to indicate and bargain prices.

The majority of the traditional miners selling diamonds only work in the local Indonesian Rupiah currency. So when you are bargaining prices make sure you know what the exchange rate is. Some diamond mining cooperative leaders will accept US$, but not many.

All diamond purchases are on a cash and carry basis with no receipts given. If you are unable to carry enough cash for your purchases, we can assist through an arrangement with the local bank to except foreign currency transfers, but please allow around 3 days for money transfer to go through.

When negotiating price for the diamonds you will need to be very patient as the bartering system is alive and well in this region. Don’t expect the diamonds to be as cheap as dirt but don’t except the first price offered to you. As a guide, expect to pay around $3000 for a good quality 1 carat diamond, although the opening price from the diamond miner could be doubles this. You will even get lower quality diamonds for half this price. When viewing rare natural colour diamonds in colours such as pink or blue, the prices will naturally be more expensive.

Please note that we support the principles of Fair Trade diamonds so that the prosperity of the region can be improved by increasing business and trade. The majority of the people are living in very meagre conditions in complete poverty and the money from all diamond sales filters down to the poorest family, to help with a better life. It is for this reason that we do not barter the price for diamonds that we purchase down to the very bottom, as a price 50% cheaper than the flashy jewellery outlets in developed countries is cheap enough.

Expedition Price

The price to carry out this diamond hunting expedition is fairly low as costs in Indonesia are quite cheap. The price quoted is based upon a local standard hotel accommodation of around 2 star and local food (as there are no international hotels or international food available in the diamond field region).

You will be required to make your own way to and from your country of residence to Jakarta international airport. The expedition commences from our guide meeting and greeting you on your arrival at the Jakarta international airport, and is completed after arriving back from the diamond fields at Jakarta International airport, where our guide will bid you farewell and safe onward travel.

• Hotel Jakarta airport for 1 night (per room): US$145
• Flight Jakarta to diamond fields (per person): US $200
• Hire car with driver 4 days (per group up to 4 people): US$600
• Local hotel accommodation for 3 nights (per room): US$150
• Meals at local restaurants for 4 days (per person): US$285
• Flight diamond fields to Jakarta (per person): US$200
• Expedition fee (per group up to 4 people): US$800

Total: US$2,430

Note

These expeditions into the Borneo diamond fields are not for the faint hearted. Although the local native population are passive friendly people and there is no personal danger, you will experience very hot humid conditions and basic facilities. The location is right on the equator where the tropical heat and humidity is at its maximum. There are no air-conditioned restaurants and only local food available. The hotel accommodation is basic, generally with no hot water or western style bath room.

Bookings

You are cordially invited to send enquiries, regarding our Fair Trade Diamond Expeditions for the Borneo diamond fields, by contacting us directly on email: owen.henderson@natural-colour-diamonds.com.au