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DIAMONDS
July 2017
MODERN MINING
25
The Marsfontein pipe or
blow as it looks today. It was
mined between 1998 and
2000.
comprising 34 percussion and nine diamond
drill holes, in the process discovering two
blows on the kimberlite dyke system. It fol-
lowed up in June with an announcement that
223 microdiamonds had been recovered from
160 kg of drill core from the drill programme,
indicating an estimated grade range of between
20 and 270 cpht (since updated to a medium
grade of 78 cpht in a range of 64 to 110 cpht at
a bottom cut-off of +1 mm). The MSA Group
in Johannesburg undertook the microdiamonds
analyses and the modelling was undertaken
by Dr JJ Ferreira, an expert in micro diamond
assessment with an international reputation.
Comments Campbell: “These results are
excellent although we need more drill samples
so that we can refine the grade estimate. We’ve
also virtually completed a very detailed ground
geophysics programme which is intended to
delineate the further lateral extension of the
system and which will underpin a second
phase of drilling starting shortly. Our goal is
to produce an inferred resource by the end of
the year.”
Although Frischgewaagt is currently receiv-
ing the bulk of BOD’s attention, the other
projects within the Vutomi package are highly
prospective and take in ground in the vicinity
of current or past producing mines, includ-
ing the Cullinan diamond mine near Tshwane
in Gauteng and the Helam fissure mine near
Swartruggens in North West Province. In
the Free State, Vutomi has six contiguous
prospecting areas. Mines in the area include
Koffiefontein and Jagersfontein in the Free State
and the Kimberley mine in the Northern Cape.
As befits a junior explorer, BOD is a very lean
operation, with Campbell being the only full-
time employee. As he says, “The appetite for
grassroots exploration is currently very low so
it is not easy to raise money and what is raised
has to be used very effectively – certainly one
cannot have the luxury of a large staff comple-
ment. Our strategy is to raise money for six to
eight months, demonstrate delivery on that and
then go back to the market for further funding
to take us forward again. While I’m the only
person working full-time for BOD, this does not
have any downside. We have a huge network of
consultants and contractors who assist us and
who, in most cases, rank among the leaders in
their respective fields.”
Among the experts that Campbell mentions
are Bjorn Havemann, who at one stage was Head
of Geophysics at De Beers, Dr Kurt Petersen, a
word-renowned diamond metallurgist, and Dr
Gargi Mishra, who has a stellar reputation in
the field of kimberlite petrography.
Summing up, Campbell notes that apart
from AK6 in Botswana and Luaxe in Angola,
there have been no significant kimberlite dis-
coveries over the past 15 or so years in Africa
or, for that matter, worldwide. “We’re hoping
to reverse that. Obviously, diamond explora-
tion is inherently an uncertain business and
no diamond explorer can ever guarantee suc-
cess. Having said that, Botswana Diamonds has
the right people, the right ground and the right
technology to find a mine – if indeed there is
a mine to be found. We’re very excited by the
company’s potential and have high hopes that
it will, in time, deliver one or more kimberlite
projects that can be developed into viable com-
mercial mining operations.”
Photos courtesy of Botswana Diamonds