Canada's Growing Diamond Industry, in an Advisory by Industrialinfo.com.Business Editors HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2001 The following is an advisory by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources (1) The data and information assets of an organization, department or unit. See data administration. (2) Another name for the Information Systems (IS) or Information Technology (IT) department. See IT. Inc.; Houston). Located in the remote Canadian Arctic on the border between the Northwest Territories Northwest Territories, territory (2001 pop. 37,360), 532,643 sq mi (1,379,028 sq km), NW Canada. The Northwest Territories lie W of Nunavut, N of lat. 60°N, and E of Yukon. and the recently formed Nunavut province sits one of the richest and newest developing diamond-bearing regions in the world. The once quiet untouched arctic wilderness close to the Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary has been a hot bed of diamond exploration and development, since the discovery of a series of ancient igneous ig·ne·ous adj. 1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of fire. 2. Geology a. Formed by solidification from a molten state. Used of rocks. b. Of or relating to rock so formed; pyrogenic. formations known as kimberlites, which host diamonds. Kimberlites are actually columns or "pipes" of rock formed under high temperature and pressure and consisting of the proper chemical composition to create diamonds. In an explosive event, the rapid rise of magma from the mantle creates the kimberlite kimberlite: see diamond. kimberlite or blue ground Dark, heavy, often fragmented igneous rock that may contain diamonds in the rock matrix. and as it cools diamonds are formed. Diamonds were discovered in the area only fifteen years ago and sparked a claim rush not seen since the gold rushes of the 1800s. Canada's first and only commercial scale diamond mine and processing plant in operation now is the Ekati diamond mine The Ekati Diamond Mine is Canada's first diamond mine. It is located near Lac de Gras at, km ( mi) north-east of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and about km ( mi) south of the Arctic circle. Ekati is a joint venture between BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc. owned by BHP Minerals Canada Limited, a subsidiary of BHP Limited (Melbourne, Australia). Constructed at a cost of $500 million, the mine has been in production for two years and produces approximately 1.3 million carats a day. Due to its remote locale, mining operations in the area have to build small self-sustaining cities at the mine site to support the workers at the mine and processing plant. Workers are flown in from Yellowknife to a private airstrip. Canada's second diamond mine, which is currently under construction, is the $870 million Diavik diamond mine The Diavik Diamond Mine is a diamond mine in the North Slave Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, about km ( mi) north of Yellowknife.[2] It has become an important part of the regional economy, employing 700, grossing C$100 million in sales, and owned by Diavik Diamond Mines Incorporated (Yellowknife, Canada), which is a 60/40 joint venture between Rio Tinto and Aber Resources, the only Canadian-owned company currently involved in the region. Industrialinfo.com is currently tracking three other planned diamond mines in Canada. Canadian diamonds are in increasingly high demand due to consumer concerns over illegal diamonds from Angola and Sierra Leon. Some of the diamonds are etched with a tiny polar bear certifying their country of origin as Canada. Diamonds from the Ekati mine are laser inscribed in·scribe tr.v. in·scribed, in·scrib·ing, in·scribes 1. a. To write, print, carve, or engrave (words or letters) on or in a surface. b. To mark or engrave (a surface) with words or letters. with a trademark maple leaf maple leaf of Canada. [Flower Symbolism: Jobes, 283] See : Flower Or Plant, National to indicate their authenticity. Industrialinfo.com provides daily news related to the industrial market place including industry alerts and databases for the energy and industrial markets. For more information on trends and upcoming construction activities for the Metals & Minerals industry as well as other industrial sectors send inquiries to metalsandmineralsgroup@industrialinfo.com or visit us at www.industrialinfo.com. |
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