As part of the provisional global list, 66 applicants qualified for supply in London, 21 in Botswana, 13 in Namibia and 2 in Canada. The DTC's South African availability has been reduced following to the sale of the Finsch and Namaqualand Mines during 2011. DTC said that the objective and rigorous assessment process has, once again, ensured that the limited rough available is offered to diamantaires who are best placed to drive local manufacturing and job creation in South Africa.
"As the availability of De Beers' rough diamonds declines in South Africa, competition for our supply has never been greater," Faried Sallie, MD of DTC SA told Diamond News, adding that DTC have selected businesses who have demonstrated the greatest commitment to transformation, the best local manufacturing of the rough sourced from the DTC and with the most commercially viable business plan. "Fulfilling the promise of the Diamond Decade is all about innovation, investment and value addition," Sallie concluded.
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