Russian diamond miner Alrosa has entered into a joint venture (JV) agreement with Zimbabwe national diamond miner Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) to develop diamond deposits in Zimbabwe.
The agreement was signed by ZCDC chairperson Killian Ukama while Alrosa deputy CEO Vladimir Marchenko signed on behalf of the Russian company.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Alrosa CEO Sergey Ivanov were also present during the signing of the agreement.
Alrosa will hold a 70% controlling stake for the development of greenfield projects, while ZCDC will own the balance.
In a media statement released on Tuesday, Marchenko said:
The creation of a JV is a major step in cooperation with our partners in Zimbabwe.
We are committed to productive work in the exploration of new promising areas and subsequent diamond mining.Our specialists have been working in Zimbabwe for more than three months now and the national authorities have been of great support to them. We have chosen various projects for the JV.
Of the existing fields for development, we are preliminary considering the areas located in the Chimanimani region.