Mothae Mine sale ‘at advanced stage’
Bereng Mpaki
THE government is at an advanced stage of finding a buyer for Mothae Diamond Mine,
Mining Minister Lebohang Thotanyana has said.
The mine was put up for sale in February this year after prospective buyer,
Paragon Diamonds Limited, failed to secure the requisite funding within the given time frame.
Paragon had, on 14 July 2015, finalised an agreement with Mothae’s erstwhile majority owner,
Lucara Diamond Corporation, to purchase its 75 percent stake in Mothae for $8.5-million (about M92.42 million).
Situated on the southern edge of the Kaapvaal Craton, which hosts the diamondiferous northern Lesotho kimberlite field,
Mothae Diamond Mine is 25 percent-owned by the government of Lesotho.
Next to Gem Diamonds’ Letseng Mine, Mothae has an indicated resource of one million carats
and an inferred resource valuation of $1 billion.
However, after the deal fell through, the government temporarily assumed 100 percent ownership of the mine,
and asked potential investors to submit their Expression of Interest for the acquisition of the mine.
In an interview with the Lesotho Times this week,
Mr Thotanyana said
they had received positive responses from potential investors and would soon finalise the sale of the mine.
“The process of finding a mining company to acquire a 75 percent stake
and operatorship of Mothae Diamond Mine is at an advanced stage''
