Botswana Proposes Lucara Investment

RAPAPORT... The government of Botswana is said to have expressedinterest in buying shares in Lucara Diamond Corp., the owner of the country'shigh-value Karowe diamond mine. "I have proposed...Lucara allow [the] government to invest inthe company," President Mokgweetsi Masisi told the Botswana Gazette. "Asa county we would benefit from such value." Lucara CEO Eira Thomas and Masisi met for a privatediscussion at a trade show earlier this month, during which the president raisedthe idea. "Lucara was pleased to have the opportunity to meet withPresident Mokgweetsi Masisi at the JCK conference in Las Vegas," the miner toldRapaport News last week. "[We] are unable to comment on the intentionsof President Masisi or the Republic of Botswana. Lucara and its subsidiary,Lucara Botswana, continue to enjoy a very positive relationship with theRepublic of Botswana, and we meet and discuss new opportunities and initiativeswith government representatives on an ongoing basis." While Masisi did not reveal how much the government intendedto invest, he mentioned that he would discuss the possibility with his cabinetand all relevant authorities. The Botswana government previously held a stakein Karowe, then known as AK6, when De Beers owned it. Lucara bought Karowe from De Beers in 2009. It hasextracted several large stones from the mine, including the 1,109-carat LesediLa Rona and the 813-carat Constellation. Image: The Karowe mine. (Lucara Diamond Corp.)