Karelian Diamond Announces Positive Till Sample Results

Karelian Diamond Resources plc (LSE:KDR) announced positive results on a series of till samples taken to trace the origin of the green diamond previously discovered in the Kuhmo region of Finland. The results suggest that the search is coming into very close proximity to the source of the diamond.
As quoted in the press release:

All of the 17 till samples contained concentrations of KIMs. One sample, which was collected at a depth of 4.6 metres, showed such exceptionally high levels (98 KIMs) that it may have been taken close to or even above the kimberlite source of the diamond. This sample comprised 38 purple to red peridotitic garnets (G9/10 Cr-pyrope), nine orange mantle garnets and 40 chromite grains in the 0.25 to 0.5 mm size range. The sample also contained six purple to red peridotitic garnets (G9/10 Cr-pyrope), one orange mantle garnet and four chromite grains in the 0.5 to 1.0 mm size range.
All six purple to red peridotitic garnets in the 0.5 to 1.0 mm size range and 15 from the 0.25 to 0.5 mm size range fractions had what are known as “partial alteration mantles”. The significance of these partial alteration mantles is that they are a further positive indication of proximity as such mantles are generally not preserved if the garnets have been transported any distance from the kimberlite source. In the Kuhmo region of Finland, high numbers of KIMs, as seen in this sample, are normally only seen in close proximity or directly over a kimberlite source. This, together with the preserved partial alteration mantles on the garnets, strongly suggests that the sample was taken directly over, or in very close proximity to, the kimberlite body which could be the source of the green diamond.

Click here to read the full Karelian Diamond Resources plc (LSE:KDR) press release.