Merlin diamond mine
Encyclopedia
The Merlin diamond mine is one of only three diamond
mines
in Australia
. The mine is located in the Northern Territory
of Australia, about 80 kilometres south of Borroloola. The mine operated for a period of about four years from 2000 to mid-2003, during which time it produced about 500,000 carats (100 kg) of high quality diamonds.
The Merlin mine has an unusually high proportion of gem-quality diamonds: 65% of production is gem-quality, and only 35% is classified as near-gem or industrial quality. This compares to a worldwide average of just 20% gem-quality diamond production at diamond mines worldwide, and a mere 5% gem-quality production at Australia's largest diamond mine, Argyle diamond mine
. The high ratio of gem-quality diamonds is responsible for a relatively high value of $108 USD per carat (540 $/g). The known ore grade at Merlin is about 0.2 carats (40 mg) per tonne
, although exploration continues under the mine's new owner. The largest diamond produced at the Merlin mine measured 104.73 carats (20.946 g), the largest ever found in Australia, and has been valued at over $500,000 USD.
The mine and mining rights were sold by Rio Tinto Group
, to Striker Resources, which explored the possibility of reopening it http://www.miningnews.net/sectionstory.asp?sourceid=c11. Striker has since become North Australian Diamonds http://www.nadl.com.au, a company which operated the mine for a short period in 2006. Rio Tinto originally acquired the mining lease after a takeover of Ashton mining (November 2000) in which it also gained full control of the Argyle diamond mine. Ashton mining initially developed and operated the mine.
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...
mines
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...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The mine is located in the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
of Australia, about 80 kilometres south of Borroloola. The mine operated for a period of about four years from 2000 to mid-2003, during which time it produced about 500,000 carats (100 kg) of high quality diamonds.
The Merlin mine has an unusually high proportion of gem-quality diamonds: 65% of production is gem-quality, and only 35% is classified as near-gem or industrial quality. This compares to a worldwide average of just 20% gem-quality diamond production at diamond mines worldwide, and a mere 5% gem-quality production at Australia's largest diamond mine, Argyle diamond mine
Argyle diamond mine
The Argyle Diamond Mine is a diamond mine located in the East Kimberley region in the remote north of Western Australia. Argyle is the largest diamond producer in the world by volume, although due to the low proportion of gem-quality diamonds, is not the leader by value. It is the only known...
. The high ratio of gem-quality diamonds is responsible for a relatively high value of $108 USD per carat (540 $/g). The known ore grade at Merlin is about 0.2 carats (40 mg) per tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
, although exploration continues under the mine's new owner. The largest diamond produced at the Merlin mine measured 104.73 carats (20.946 g), the largest ever found in Australia, and has been valued at over $500,000 USD.
The mine and mining rights were sold by Rio Tinto Group
Rio Tinto Group
The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...
, to Striker Resources, which explored the possibility of reopening it http://www.miningnews.net/sectionstory.asp?sourceid=c11. Striker has since become North Australian Diamonds http://www.nadl.com.au, a company which operated the mine for a short period in 2006. Rio Tinto originally acquired the mining lease after a takeover of Ashton mining (November 2000) in which it also gained full control of the Argyle diamond mine. Ashton mining initially developed and operated the mine.