Petra Diamonds is the owner of the Cullinan Diamond Mine in South Africa, one of the world’s largest diamond resources. In a statement published on 1 October, the company said it was undertaking a ‘strategic review’ that would examine all possible solutions to the liquidity needs of the business.
The statement revealed that the board is finalising the appointment of a financial adviser to complete the review and that José Manuel Vargas will step down as chair of the board and director of the company with immediate effect. Vargas previously oversaw the company's 2025 refinancing.
Lerato Molebatsi will become interim board chair. Earlier this year, CEO Vivek Gadodia lamented the weakness of the diamond market and the influence of ‘global macro factors’ such as conflict in the Middle East and reporting following the announcement highlighted the broad range of challenges facing the company.
"The strategic review comes just months after Petra placed its Finsch mine in South Africa into business rescue ahead of a potential permanent closure,” writes Jackson Chen.
"The mine, acquired from De Beers in 2011, has historically been one of the world’s major diamond operations and one of South Africa’s largest by production.
"The decision to place Finsch into business rescue came amid deteriorating conditions across the natural diamond market in recent years."
Petra Diamonds Limited is traded on the London Stock Exchange. This development comes amid prolonged industry speculation around the sale of the De Beers Group, the world’s largest diamond producer.
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