Lucapa Refinances to Strengthen Mothae Business

RAPAPORT... Lucapa Diamond Company hassigned a new refinancing agreement that will allow it to reduce its debts and further develop its Mothae mine in Lesotho. New Azilian will give theminer a one-year loan of $7 million, some of which it will put toward repayinga loan to Equigold ahead of schedule. That loan was taken out in 2017. Lucapa will also use thefunds from New Azilian as working capital, providing it with more flexibility inscheduling future diamond tenders, it said Thursday. This will help the minermaximize its revenues from those sales, it added. "These new refinancingarrangements will provide Lucapa with added financial strength to continue tobuild our strategic position in this niche high-value diamond sector," said LucapaCEO Stephen Wetherall. The agreement follows therecovery of a high-quality diamond from Mothae weighing 55 carats, the fifth of that magnitude the new deposit has yielded. The next tender of rough stones fromMothae is scheduled for the second quarter. The mine began commercialproduction in January. Lucapa also owns the Lulomine in Angola, known for its large, high-quality stones. Image: The 55-carat stone retrieved from the Mothae mine. (Lucapa Diamond Company)