Ann: Quarterly Activities Report, page-80

Aries

You are incorrect.

You say that you are the expert, well so am I.

I make my living by project managing major projects.

One of the projects i finished two years ago was a mine pit in QLD outback. Similar materials, and similar environment.

Here are the costs ( Google the equipment and see for your self that this is very achievable even in Australia )

I hired a company who self supplied / wet hired scrapers and dozers.

Scraper scraped and bulk hauled over 700 meters - reducing the need for dump trucks and bringing the costs down.
Dozer pushed the scraper once soil became to hard or angles were difficult such as scraping up from the pit rather than down. This way Scraper loads the entire time on the way down and on the way up as i wish.

Here are the costs to move the soil per m^3

Scraper $1.2 / m^3
Dozer $0.5 / m^3
Total Cost / M^3 $1.7

Now our latest exploration ( not mining ) grades given in the quarterly report are 5.7 carats / 100 m^3

So using the same principal ie scraper and dozer ( just two machines ) the cost of 100m^3 hauled to stock pile is $170 dollars yet the return is 5.7 carats ( average given in the quarterly report of LOM )

Quarterly stated that diamonds were valued at $1239 per carat. Source - Quarterly report
Cost $170
Diamonds worth $7062.3

Next step is processing and there is costs involved which i do not know. But Lom would be left with $6892 to do the processing in order to break even.
We one the DMS, labour costs are cheaper that in Australia by very FAR.

I did not make these numbers up. These are actual costs in the outback QLD.

Google the scraper and dozer costs per 1m^3 for your self.

Scrapers can move huge amounts of soil very quickly.
I moved 47,000m^3 in two weeks with two scrapers and and one scraper was breaking down constantly. On top of that there was inclement weather in between when labour does not work.

As for my credentials, i am now working for the largest project management consultancy in Southern Hemisphere.