Diamond Fields International Ltd., (DFI-TSE) is pleased to announce that the Namibian Minister of Mines and Energy has given notice of his intention to grant to DFI’s wholly owned Namibian subsidiary, a new Mining Licence ML111, offshore Luderitz, Namibia. The company has accepted this grant and anticipates receiving formal license documentation later this month. The license area, covering approximately 310 square kilometers, has been granted for an initial tenure period of 15 years. Mining license ML111 covers all identified resource areas outlined to date by Diamond Fields, including the Sea Diamonds Project areas.
The issuance of the mining license provides Diamond Fields with the core regulatory approval to proceed with the development of the Sea Diamonds Project. Mr. Francis Waldron, Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Fields states that, “We are pleased the Minister and the Government have shown confidence in Diamond Fields and our project by giving notice to grant the license. Our team is excited about this development and we look forward to moving the project ahead quickly.”
The Namibian Minister of Mines and Energy has also recently granted to Diamond Fields two new exclusive prospecting licenses, EPL 2779 and 2780 for the exploration of precious stones. The licenses were granted for initial tenure periods of three years, with successive two yearly renewal options available.
The two contiguous licenses have a combined extent of approximately 1,100 square kilometers and are located nearly 40 kilometers northeast of the coastal town of Luderitz, within the northern part of Diamond Area 1, part of the vast Sperrgebiet or “forbidden zone.”
The licenses were applied for on the basis of the Company’s belief that they represent prospective terrain for the occurrence of palaeo river channel diamond deposits. Preliminary inspection of available data indicates that the contiguous area is crossed by the palaeo-Koichab River system, a system believed to have acted as an important point source or conduit for the contribution to, and concentration of diamonds in, economically viable deposits in Luderitz Bay. Mark Collins, Chief Operating Officer, Allan Walden, Manager of Namibia and Randal Cullen, Principal Geologist, are in the process of evaluating the potential of the areas prior to planning an exploration program for 2001.
Diamond Fields is an international diamond exploration and mining company and continues to pursue diamond business opportunities worldwide. The Company is currently focusing on the development of its Sea Diamonds Project in Namibia.