X-ray know-how used to search out the two,492-carat stone within the African nation’s Karowe Diamond Mine.
A 2,492-carat diamond – the second largest on this planet – has been found in Botswana, says the Canadian mining firm that discovered the stone.
The diamond was found within the Karowe Diamond Mine in northeastern Botswana utilizing X-ray know-how, Lucara Diamond Corp stated in a press release on Thursday.
Lucara didn’t give a worth for the discover or point out its high quality. However when it comes to carats, the stone is second solely to the three,016-carat Cullinan Diamond found in South Africa in 1905.
“We’re ecstatic in regards to the restoration of this extraordinary 2,492-carat diamond,” Lucara President William Lamb stated within the assertion.
Footage launched by the corporate present the diamond is as massive because the palm of a hand.
This discover was “one of many largest tough diamonds ever unearthed” and was detected utilizing the corporate’s Mega Diamond Restoration X-ray know-how put in in 2017 to determine and protect massive, high-value diamonds, the assertion stated.
Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi was proven the large stone in a while Thursday. His authorities stated it was the second greatest on this planet.
Tobias Kormind, managing director of Europe’s largest on-line diamond jeweller, 77 Diamonds, confirmed it was the most important tough diamond to be unearthed because the Cullinan Diamond, elements of which adorn Britain’s crown jewels.
“This discovery is essentially because of newer know-how that permits bigger diamonds to be extracted from the bottom with out breaking into items. So we are going to possible see extra the place this got here from,” he stated.
Botswana is likely one of the world’s largest producers of diamonds, its most important supply of earnings, accounting for 30 p.c of its gross home product and 80 p.c of its exports.
The Southern African nation final month proposed a regulation that will ask mining firms, as soon as granted a licence, to promote a 24-percent stake in mines to native buyers except the federal government workouts its possibility to amass the shareholding.
Earlier than the discover was introduced on Thursday, the most important diamond found in Botswana was a 1,758-carat stone mined by Lucara on the Karowe mine in 2019 and named Sewelo.
Lucara discovered a 1,174-carat diamond in Botswana in 2021 utilizing the identical X-ray know-how.
