Mining Pink Argyle Diamonds with Rio Tinto

There has always been stories I wonder how true, spun by diamond traders and merchants about the rarity of the amazing Pink diamonds and their source of origin - the Argyle Diamond Mine.

Argyle is known for its production of rare pink diamonds and is a large contributor to the ‎East Kimberley economy, with 70 percent of the mine's workforce from the local area.

Just days ago, Rio Tinto officially opened its Argyle underground diamond mine after a major capital improvement project that the company expects will extend the life of mine beyond 2020. ‎

‎“The new Argyle underground mine has allowed us to extend the life of this iconic asset ‎for Rio Tinto and Western Australia," said Alan Davies, the CEO of Rio Tinto's  ‎diamonds and minerals division.‎
What it means is this $2.2 billion underground project is expected to restore annual production to around 20 million carats, ‎compared with only 8.471 million carats mined in 2012.

Since its ‎launch about 25 years ago, approximately 800 million carats of diamonds have been ‎mined at the Argyle mine. ‎Rio Tinto explained that the underground mine uses the latest in block caving technology and is ‎the first of its kind in Western Australia.

It's common knowledge in the diamond trade that when pink diamonds were first discovered more than 25 years ago, it fell into the category of 'champagnes' and 'browns' for most did not know how precious and rare they are. It is only after much research and discovery of its scarcity that we can call it a 'freak of nature' for scientists cannot quite explain in chemistry why they turned pink in the ground. Afterall they hold the same chemical carbon composition like any diamond.

Read about the Argyle Diamond Tender, where the most exceptional and rare diamonds are sold by annual invitation-only tender. The Tender represents the opportunity to bid on exceptional diamonds that are not publicly available.  For every 1,000,000 carats (200 kg) of rough pink diamonds produced by the mine, only 1 carat (0.20 g) polished will be offered for sale at the tender. The invitation-only tender event is a highlight of the coloured diamond industry's calendar. An insight to how the tender is conducted, is like a blind auction where you place a closed bid and if you do not win the auction, you know it is sold for more than your bid price, but not what it went for.

Blame the Japanese and the crop of Chinese fascinated with the colour Pink. For most of the brightest and the best, mined from Western Australia, often that way before it comes onto the Australian market.There simply isn't enough demand compared to its allure to our foreign neighbours.

Despite the Argyle Pink diamond's exclusive rarity not available to the public, if you are interested in owning one, I have the means. Perhaps a rare beauty of a pink diamond for your engagement ring?