The Western Australia (WA) Government has recently announced a cut in diamond royalty rates from 7.5 to 5 percent. Diamond miners have warmly welcomed the one-third royalty rate cut, three years after the McGowan Government angered Western Australia's gold miners with a proposal to raise royalties, according to media reports.
The reduction was recommended in a 2015 Government report, that all diamond miners pay a flat rate of five per cent. The WA's diamond industry is facing a significant turning point, with the looming closure of Australia's largest producer of diamonds at Argyle Diamond mine in the East Kimberley, and the revival of the mothballed Ellendale mine. Ellendale produced half the global supply of fancy yellow diamonds made famous by Tiffany & Co jewellery.
Minister for Mines and Petroleum Bill Johnston said it was hoped the rate reduction from seven-and-a-half to five per cent, would help encourage a rejuvenation of diamond exploration in the Kimberley. "As we watch the Argyle mine come to the end of its life, it would be great to encourage explorers to get out there and find the next big thing for the diamond industry," he said.
Aruna Gaitonde, Editor in Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished
Source: Rough Polished 27-7-2020
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