The data presented this Wednesday by the head of the Planning Department of the Angolan Diamond Trading Company (Sodiam), Sendje Dias, indicate that, in the period under analysis, the country exported 3.9 million carats of diamonds, totaling revenue of just over 693 million dollars.
In the first half of 2023, more than four million carats of diamonds were exported, totaling revenue of 700.5 million dollars.
In the period under analysis, diamonds were sold at an average price of 191.57 dollars, a reduction of 5.46 percent, representing a drop of 11 dollars compared to the same period last year, due to the market situation.
Data presented by Endiama, Angola's public diamond company, show that in the first six months of the current year, the diamond subsector recorded production of 5.6 million carats, an increase of 36 percent compared to the same period in 2023, which recorded production of 4.1 million carats.
The main destinations for diamonds were mainly the United Arab Emirates, followed by Belgium and a tiny portion to Botswana.
Diamonds contributed 45.5 million dollars to tax and royalty revenues in the first half of 2024, an increase of three percent compared to the same period in the previous year.
Speaking to the press, the Secretary of State for Mineral Resources, Jânio Corrêa Victor, said that the results were influenced by the low price and technical issues of the companies.
"If we look closely, the current price of diamonds is also not very satisfactory, it does not provide for a huge amount of production, but there are possibilities for increasing it", said Jânio Corrêa Victor.
The minister highlighted the need to optimise mining activities and improve mining planning, but he mentioned that there are external factors that do not depend on the sector, such as the issue of electricity.
"Many of our projects still use fossil fuels. This needs to be resolved. It has already been partially resolved and we are working with Minia [Ministry of Energy and Water], we are looking at solutions with solar energy. I think we are on the right track", said the Secretary of State.
