Rio Tinto’s Diamond Production Up 12 Percent in Q3

Rapaport reported that Rio Tinto plc’s (ASX:RIO,LSE:RIO,NYSE:RIO) diamond production came to 4.158 million carats during the third quarter, which ended on September 30. That’s an increase of 12 percent from the previous year.

As quoted in the market news:

Growth was driven by an increase in the amount of ore processed and higher-grades at its fully-owned Argyle mine in Western Australia, following full commissioning of the underground mine in April 2013.

Production at Argyle rose 26 percent to 3.085 million carats during the quarter with the amount of ore processed up 20 percent to 2.088 million tonnes. Rio Tinto’s production at the Canada-based Diavik mine, in which it owns a 60 percent stake, fell 13 percent to 1.003 million carats due to lower grades of ore mined during the quarter.

Rio Tinto also owns 78 percent of the Murowa mine in Zimbabwe where its share of production declined 24 percent to 70,000 carats.

Click here to read the full Rapaport report.