The Northern Miner February 17 2020 Issue 4

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BONUS MAGAZINE: EXPLORATION TRENDS & DEVELOPMENTS Geotech_Earlug_2016_Alt2.pdf 1 2016-06-24 4:27:20 PM

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Fertile ground for a variety of minerals / 9-13

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FEBRUARY 17–MARCH 1, 2020 / VOL. 106 ISSUE 4 / GLOBAL MINING NEWS · SINCE 1915 / $3.99 / WWW.NORTHERNMINER.COM

Coronavirus to hit demand for commodities, economists say ECONOMICS

| Outbreak to drag down growth

BY TRISH SAYWELL tsaywell@northernminer.com

U

ncertainty over the coronavirus outbreak — which has sickened 43,103 people in 25 countries and left 1,018 people dead (all but two of them in mainland China) — has economists and analysts trying to calculate the economic impact of the disease on commodities, trade and supply chains and global economic growth. UBS economists expect the current coronavirus outbreak, which originated at a market in Wuhan, China, will reduce global growth this year by 2.5 percentage points, The Wall Street Journal reported on Feb. 5.

The health crisis is expected to take a dramatic economic toll on China, where 42,708 of the 43,103 cases have been reported, according to the latest figures from the World Health Organization. Last year, the Chinese economy grew by 6.1% — the slowest pace in nearly 30 years — and many experts have already started cutting their GDP forecasts for 2020. Recently, Moody’s Investor Service estimated Chinese GDP will grow 5.8% this year, while BMO Capital Markets cut its GDP growth estimate for China to 4.5% in the first quarter of 2020 and to 5.5% for the full year. China absorbs more than 50% See CORONAVIRUS / 2

The Mega Diamond Recovery XRT circuit at Lucara Diamond’s Karowe diamond mine in Botswana.   LUCARA DIAMOND

Lucara recovers 549 carat white diamond BOTSWANA

| Karowe mine continues to yield exceptional stones

BY TRISH SAYWELL tsaywell@northernminer.com

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ucara Diamond (TSX: LUC) has recovered a 549 carat diamond from its Karowe mine in Botswana. The mine — one of the world’s most prolific producers of large and high-value type IIA diamonds — is the only diamond mine in recorded history to have produced two stones greater than 1,000 carats. Lucara said the unbroken 549 carat white diamond is the fourth-largest diamond found at Karowe and the first large gem it has recovered from its Mega Diamond Recovery XRT circuit. The MDR circuit allows for

diamond recovery after primary crushing and prior to milling and was commissioned in 2017. The diamond was recovered from direct milling of ore sourced from the EM/PK(S) unit of the mine’s South Lobe and follows the recent recovery of another gem quality 176 carat stone from the same ore block. Lucara’s 1,758 carat Sewelo diamond, which was recovered in April 2019 and is the largest ever recorded in Botswana, was also recovered from Karowe’s EM/PK(S) unit, as were Lucara’s 1,109 carat Lesedi La Rona diamond and its 813 carat Constellation diamond, both recovered in 2015. A 374 carat stone from Karowe sold for US$17.5 million, while the 1,109 carat Lesedi La Rona sold for

US$53 million and the 813 carat Constellation diamond for US$63.10 million. Edward Sterck, a mining analyst with BMO Capital Markets in London, estimated the 549 carat diamond could fetch more than US$15 million. “This appears to be a special stone See LUCARA / 2 PM40069240

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A 549 carat diamond extracted from the Karowe mine in Botswana.   LUCARA DIAMOND

CANADIAN MINING HALL OF FAME: INDUCTEES HONOURED / 5

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