Rough diamond

India

India remained the only producer of rough diamonds until the discovery of Brazilian deposits in the 18th century.

Brazil

Discovered in Brazil in 1726, rough diamonds are scattered throughout the country over nearly 3500 kilometers. The largest stones were found in Coromande, including the 726-carat President Vargas diamond.

The former USSR

Rough diamonds were discovered in Russia in 1830 in the gold placers of the Ural Mountains. The largest Soviet diamonds are kept in the Kremlin's diamond collection: the Yakutia Star with 232.10 carats, Yvan Babushkin with 171.15 carats, Pochin with 135 carats and the Great Bear with 114.37 carats.

South Africa

In 1866, the rough diamond market was turned upside down by the discovery of the rich deposits in South Africa. The discovery of the Kimberley diamond volcanic vents put an end to centuries of questioning about the origin of diamonds. Finally discovered in a parent rock, kimberlite, diamonds became one of the great interests of growing industrial capitalism.

TODAY

The largest rough diamond producers in 2011 were:

Bostwana: 22% of world production

Russia: 20% of world production

Canada: 19% of world production

South Africa: 15%.

TOMORROW

Botswana is the world's largest diamond producer and rough diamonds account for 75% of the country's exports. However, the country's production is set to decline rapidly from 2020 unless new deposits are discovered by then. This is also the case for South Africa. Many African mines are in their final years of production.

World rough diamond production is therefore expected to decline in the long term. Where are the mines with the longest life expectancy today? The answer is undoubtedly Russia. With estimated reserves of $110 billion, Russia is not expected to exhaust its reserves for at least two generations. Russia's market share in diamond production is therefore expected to increase significantly in the coming years.

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History of diamonds