It’s been more than two years since speculation about the future of De Beers began, with parent company Anglo American confirming its intentions to sell its stake in the company around May 2024.
De Beers has operations and exploration projects in Botswana, Namibia, Angola, South Africa and Canada, which have been brought to market as part of a broader restructuring amid declining diamond prices and the influence of lab-created diamonds. CEO Al Cook said in an interview at a Reuters conference in London that the process was nearing an end.
"I'm hopeful that it'll happen in weeks rather than months going forward," he said.
"It's been a two-year period. There's been a lot of negotiations. They're now maturing. We've never been closer than we are to a sale."
Reporting from Reuters noted that the sale has attracted interest from the governments of Botswana, which already holds a 15 per cent stake, Namibia and Angola. They are members of consortia with companies interested in buying Anglo American’s 85 per cent stake.
"I think what's good for us is we've had countries that really understand diamonds," Cook said.
"We've had consortia and companies that know a lot about diamonds wanting to take stakes. So we've got all the ingredients for a really powerful public-private partnership. But as with all deals, we need to get it over the line."
The report added that there are two consortia still pursuing the stakes in De Beers, down from six in 2025.
Research recently published by De Beers found that purchases of natural diamond jewellery products remain at pre-pandemic levels, despite positive trends in key areas. ‘The Diamond Report’ was published on 11 June and included a survey of 18,500 people aged between 18 and 74.
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