23rd Apr 2014 09:55
LONDON (Alliance News) - Petra Diamonds Ltd Wednesday said that production rose in the third quarter, which boosted revenues in the period, and said that it is firmly on track to meet its full-year production target.
The diamond mining company said that production in the third quarter ended March 31, increased 15% to 743,424 carats, up from 647,248 carats the prior year, boosted by a strong run rate and increased contribution from the Finsch mine. It said that production for the nine month period was up 26% to 2.38 million carats.
Petra said that increased production drove a 55% increase in revenues for the third quarter to USD163.0 million, up from USD105.7 million the prior year, which was also boosted by the sale of a 29.6 carat blue diamond during the period, which sold for USD25.6 million.
The company said it remains firmly on track to meet its production target for the full-year of around 3.0 million carats, and said that it has seen a strong start to the year for the rough diamond market, with the company achieving price increases of around 10%. Petra said it expects the market to consolidate around these price levels for the remainder of the financial year.
"The diamond market has had an encouragingly strong start to 2014, further underpinning Petra's positive outlook for the remainder of the 2014 financial year," said Chief Executive Officer Johan Dippenaar in a statement.
Petra Diamonds shares were up 4.1% at 156.86 pence per share Wednesday morning, one of the biggest gainers on the FTSE 250.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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