De Beers Canada announced today it has entered a $107 million agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the outstanding securities of Peregrine Diamonds Ltd (TSX: PGD).
Peregrine Diamonds owns the high-quality Chidliak diamond resource in Nunavut.
The Chidliak resource was discovered in 2008 and is about 120 kilometres northeast of Iqaluit on Baffin Island. A total of 74 kimberlite pipes have been identified at Chidliak, including the CH-6 and CH-7 pipes. These are the current focus of Peregrine’s Chidliak Phase One Diamond Development programme, which has a total Inferred Mineral Resource in excess of 22 million carats.
Peregrine’s recent Preliminary Economic Assessment for Chidliak points to the high quality of the CH-6 deposit in particular. An estimated grade of 2.41 carats per tonne and a diamond valuation of US$151 per carat (equating to approximately US$360 per tonne) make CH-6 one of the most attractive undeveloped diamond resources in Canada.
Peregrine also has exploration properties elsewhere in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
“This investment reinforces De Beers Group’s long-term commitment to Canada, following our investment in the Gahcho Kué diamond mine, which entered commercial production last year,” says Kim Truter, CEO, De Beers Canada.
“Chidliak is a high value prospect and the Peregrine team has done great work to bring it to this advanced stage. With the transformation of our company in Canada over the past two years, our focused investment in new and innovative mining methods, and our expertise in Canada’s arctic environments, we believe we are very well positioned to now develop the resource further,” says Truter.
