Mothae Mine Hit by Second Covid Closure

By John Jeffay / January 18, 2021 / www.idexonline.com / Article Link

(IDEX Online) - The Mothae mine in Lesotho has been closed for a second time by coronavirus.The country is in a 14-day lockdown as it suffers an unprecedented spike in infections.The deposit, jointly operated by Australian miner Lucapa and the Lesotho government, closed last March, largely as a precaution.The pandemic had barely touched the tiny landlocked nation at the time, but earlier this month the number of daily cases leapt from zero to over 900.""Our priority is to ensure the health and safety of our valued teams on site. The suspension is expected to be temporary in nature as it is a mine operational health and safety decision, not a market limitation," said Stephen Weatherall, the company's managing director."Lucapa continues to engage with its financiers through this period as the diamond market continues its positive trajectory."Only days before the closure, on 13 January, Mothae achieved its highest ever average per-carat price -  $1,198 - for a $5.6m parcel.

Pic, courtesy Lucapa, shows select D-color specials -  weighing (from left) 14 carats, 19 carats, 101 carats and 28 carats

Recent News

Gold stocks still up after pullback late in the week

October 20, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

US regional bank slump goes global, driving market into gold

October 20, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Gold stocks weaker but outperform slump in other sectors

October 13, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

West Africa-focussed Robex and PDI to merge

October 13, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Gold stocks outperform equity market gains

October 06, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com
See all >
Share to Youtube Share to Facebook Facebook Share to Linkedin Share to Twitter Twitter Share to Tiktok