Stellar Diamonds plc (LSE:STEL) provided an updated on its Guinea-based Baoulé kimberlite project, commenting that it plans to fast track it to the trial mining stage.

Other highlights include:

Trial mining will utilise Stellar’s existing in-country mining plant and equipment
Plant commissioning expected by end August 2014
Objective to generate early cash flow and determine the diamond grades and value
Historical data suggests grade of between 13 and 40cpht and diamond value in excess of US$200/ct
Internal resource target (non JORC) of 3 million carats to 300m depth

Karl Smithson, chief executive of Stellar, commented:

We have already made progress establishing the local infrastructure for the project and we are in the process of relocating our significant earth moving and kimberlite processing plant, already located in Guinea, to the Baoulé pipe. We expect to commission the processing plant in August 2014 and our recently completed financing means that Stellar is fully funded to move Baoulé into the trial mining stage and in-turn cash flow. We are also fully funded to continue bulk sampling and diamond value modelling for the definitive feasibility study underway at our 1.1 million carat Tongo kimberlite project in Sierra Leone.

Click here to read the full Stellar Diamonds plc (LSE:STEL) press release.