Last year, Endiama produced around nine million carats, and the objective for this year is to produce around 12 million carats.
"The Empresa Nacional de Diamantes de Angola will increase its production to 12 million carats of diamond in 2023, surpassing the figure of nine million carats reached last year", reads a statement from Endiama, which VerAngola had access.
The company's PCA, who was speaking to the press at the end of a meeting with officials from the State Asset Management and Participation Institute (IGAPE), said that the strategy to be used to reach that number involves improving the production structure of the mines in operation, as well as for launching new exploration projects: "Improve the production structure of mines in operation and secondly launch new exploration projects", he said.
According to the statement, Ganga Júnior also highlighted the improvements in the results of the company and its subsidiaries throughout 2022, whose turnover reached around 2 billion dollars.
"We highlight the results (...). In 2017 we still had a loss of around 3.5 million dollars (...) and from this point on we have been substantially increasing our results, having reached even already around 79 to 80 million dollars", he said.
"On the other hand, diamond production and sales rates have also been improving. We started with an annual turnover close to one billion dollars, now in 2022 we are very close to two billion dollars, for example, improvements actually both from a qualitative and quantitative point of view", he added.
On the occasion, Ganga Júnior also spoke about the implementation process of the Diamond Exchange in Angola: "The process is ongoing", he indicated, adding that they are working with Sodiam, the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas and other entities with The aim is that in the second quarter of this year the stock exchange will start operating on a provisional basis.
"The objective is that this year the exchange starts operating in a provisional phase, in a provisional headquarters (...) and then, later on, to work in its definitive facilities, but we have no doubt that to occur still in the course of of the second half of this year, at least this is the objective", he said.