Venetia Mine

De Beers Société Anonyme (DBSA) is taking the opportunity provided by South Africa’s laws on black empowerment to cash in on part of its South African operations, writes Mineweb. Luxembourg-domiciled DBSA has agreed to sell 26% of DBCM, its South African subsidiary, to Ponahalo Capital, owned by various small black empowerment groups and, indirectly, by De Beers’s South African employees for R3.7 billion -- $600 million at the current rand:dollar exchange rate. Ponahalo does not, itself, have the cash to pay for the 26% stake in DBCM and will be borrowing all but R10 million, or less than 0.3% of the total, from Standard Bank. DBSA will itself “guarantee” R800 million advanced by Standard Bank.

Shareholders in South African mining house Anglovaal Mining Ltd. (Avmin) have, as expected, approved the group's sale of its diamond interests and a 27 rand cash distribution per share, according to BridgeNews. Earlier this year Avmin announced that it had agreed to sell its stakes in Venetia and Finsch to De Beers Cons. Mines Ltd. as part of its decision to focus purely on the production of gold and base metals.

The Financial Times reported this morning that De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd will purchase Anglovaal Mining's (Avmin) stake in the Saturn partnership for R3.7 billion (US$588 million) in cash. Avmin has an 87.5 per cent interest in the Saturn partnership. De Beers has agreed to make an offer for the remainder of the Saturn partnership. The Saturn partnership receives 50 per cent of the pre-tax profits of Venetia, the richest diamond mine in South Africa. De Beers already manages Venetia and receives the remaining 50 per cent of its pre-tax profits. De Beers will also reportedly acquire Avmin's 20 per cent stake in Finsch Diamonds for R20 million. As part of the deal, De Beers will also dispose of its 22 per cent shareholding in Avmin, which the company acquired only last year.