adminlocal gems, a senior government official has said.
According to the Mining.com website, De Beers diamond retail arm Forevermark said it will not sell diamonds from the Chiadzwa fields, alleging that Mines and Mining Development Minister Obert Mpofu had admitted that smuggling of the gems was rife.
Diamond regulator, Kimberley Process, last week, gave Zimbabwe the green light to resume sales from its Marange fields. Sales of diamonds from Marange were banned in 2009 following allegations of smuggling and abuse of illegal miners by security forces.
The KP has granted the four firms mining diamonds in Chiadzwa permission to sell diamonds.
De Beers also alleged Marange diamonds were small and low in quality for the brand to sell. Mines and Mining Development deputy Minister Gift Chimanikire told New Ziana that Zimbabwe did not intend to sell its diamonds to the lowly ranked De Beers.
“We do not have to sell diamonds to De Beers. It is just but a small player in the industry. In fact we do not trade with De Beers at all,” he said.
Deputy Min Chimanikire said the refusal by De Beers to trade in diamonds from Zimbabwe was not a threat at all to the Marange gems.
“We do not need De Beers but we need the market. The market is ready to buy our diamonds,” he said.
Zimbabwe is projected to earn over US$2 billion per year from sales of diamonds. – New Ziana.
Online Reporter