The Damtshaa diamond mine is a diamond

Diamond

In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...

 mine

Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...

 located in Botswana

Botswana

Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...

 about 220 kilometres (136.7 mi) west of the city of Francistown

Francistown

Francistown or Nyangabgwe is the second largest city in Botswana, with a population of about 85,363, and often described as the "Capital of the North". It is located in eastern Botswana, about north-northeast from the capital, Gaborone...

. Damtshaa, meaning "water for a tortoise

Tortoise

Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...

", is owned by Debswana

Debswana

Debswana Diamond Company Ltd, or simply Debswana, is a giant mining company located in Botswana, and is the world's leading producer of diamonds by value. Debswana is a joint venture between the government of Botswana and the South African diamond company De Beers; each party owns 50 percent of...

, a partnership

Partnership

A partnership is an arrangement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests.Since humans are social beings, partnerships between individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments, and varied combinations thereof, have always been and remain commonplace...

 between the De Beers

De Beers

De Beers is a family of companies that dominate the diamond, diamond mining, diamond trading and industrial diamond manufacturing sectors. De Beers is active in every category of industrial diamond mining: open-pit, underground, large-scale alluvial, coastal and deep sea...

 company and the government of Botswana. It is the newest of four mines operated by the company, officially opening on October 25, 2003.

Damtshaa is of open pit construction, located on top of four distinct kimberlite

Kimberlite

Kimberlite is a type of potassic volcanic rock best known for sometimes containing diamonds. It is named after the town of Kimberley in South Africa, where the discovery of an diamond in 1871 spawned a diamond rush, eventually creating the Big Hole....

 pipes

Volcanic pipe

Volcanic pipes are subterranean geological structures formed by the violent, supersonic eruption of deep-origin volcanoes. They are considered to be a type of diatreme. Volcanic pipes are composed of a deep, narrow cone of solidified magma , and are usually largely composed of one of two...

 of varying ore grade. The mine is forecast to produce about 5 million carats (1,000 kg) of diamond from 39 million tons of ore

Ore

An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....

 over the projected 31 year life of the mine. In 2003, the Damtshaa mine produced 292,000 carats (58.4 kg). Recovered ore grade averages about 0.06 carats (12 mg) per metric ton. The ore produced at Damtshaa is processed at a processing plant at its sister mine, the Orapa diamond mine

Orapa diamond mine

The Orapa diamond mine is the world's largest diamond mine. The mine is located in Orapa, a town in the Boteti Sub-District of Botswana about west of the city of Francistown. Orapa is owned by Debswana, a partnership between the De Beers company and the government of Botswana...

, about 20 km (12.4 mi) distant. The Damtshaa mine is also managed from the Orapa mine, and is included in Orapa's and Letlhakane's

Letlhakane diamond mine

The Letlhakane diamond mine is a diamond mine located in Botswana about west of the city of Francistown. Letlhakane, meaning "little reeds", is owned by Debswana, a partnership between the De Beers company and the government of Botswana. It is the second oldest of four mines operated by the...

 safety and environmental programs, meaning that Damtshaa is also ISO 14001 certified. Damtshaa employs around 180 people.