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Petra Diamonds Ltd on Monday announced steps to reduce cost and gave an update on the sale of its interest in the Koffiefontein diamond mine in South Africa. The diamond mining group with operations in South Africa and Tanzania said it targets cost savings of more than $30 million per year. One of the measures to cut costs is a proposal to reduce throughput tonnages at the Finsch mine in South Africa to about 2.2 million tonnes per year from 2.8 million tonnes. Chief Executive Officer Richard Duffy said the company remains on track to deliver its $75 million cash savings target for financial year 2024 which runs until the end of June. ‘The company has further increased its cost savings target for FY 2025 to more than $30 million per annum, on a sustainable basis going forward, across its South African operations, centralised services and overheads,’ he added. Further, the company entered into a definitive transaction deal with affiliates of the Stargems diamond group for the sale of its interest in the Koffiefontein diamond mine. It did not disclose for how much it plans to sell its interest, but noted that it will avoid incurring closure-related costs of $15 million to $18 million in its balance sheet provisions dated December 31, 2023. ‘We believe Stargems has the technical and financial capability to conduct operations in a responsible manner for all stakeholders,’ CEO Duffy said. Petra Diamonds said it will provide further updates on the progress of completing the sale soon. Petra Diamonds shares were 0.8% lower at 41.67 pence each late Monday morning in London. Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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