Petra announces partial Tender 5 results, which include the sale of goods from its Finsch and Williamson mines but not from its Cullinan Mine.
The Finsch and Williamson sales, which were concluded prior to the recent announcement of the US tariffs, resulted in total sales of 176kcts sold for US$18 million. Overall average prices increased 9% on Tender 4 due largely to like-for-like prices increasing 8%, with the balance attributable to product mix.
Tender 5 sales for the Cullinan Mine were originally expected to complete by the end of this week. However, the US tariffs announcement late last week has resulted in considerable diamond market uncertainty. In response to this, Petra has decided to postpone its Tender 5 sales for the Cullinan Mine (c. 200,000 carats) until there is greater clarity around the impact of the tariffs. We believe this decision will lead to more supportive market prices being obtained for the Cullinan Mine goods.
In light of ongoing market uncertainty (including as a result of the US tariffs) and the product mix issue at Cullinan described below, the Company will continue to keep its pricing assumptions for FY 2025 under review.
Product Mix at Cullinan Mine: The Cullinan Mine goods postponed from the Tender 5 sale have experienced product mix variability. This has been caused by a lower number of gem quality stones than expected, specifically in the +10.8-carat category. This issue also resulted in lower than anticipated revenues and average prices for the Cullinan Mine’s goods in Tenders 3 and 4, as announced in December 2024 and February 2025, respectively.
The Cullinan Mine has a history of experiencing product mix variability. This is expected given the maturity of the C-Cut ore-body and we expect the product mix at Cullinan Mine to normalise as the proportion of fresh ore from the CC1E project increases. While we have not yet seen a marked improvement in the product mix at the Cullinan Mine, in recent weeks Cullinan Mine has produced some +10.8ct high quality gem stones, including an 81ct D colour, Type II stone which the Company expects will provide some support for average prices in the next tender.
Business Restructuring Plan & Q3 FY 2025 Operating Update: As part of the implementation of the Business Restructuring Plan, Petra has completed the section 189 (retrenchment) process affecting our Group and South African operations support functions. This was initially announced in December 2024. Petra is also close to finalising its Life of Mine reviews which is the final element of the Business Restructuring Plan to right-size its cost base.
Petra intends to provide an update on the Business Restructuring Plan and the Q3 FY 2025 operating update together with the results of the postponed Cullinan sales tender, with such sales tender concluding once there is greater market certainty around the impact of the US tariffs on diamond markets.
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