Between 1967 and 1972, four small diamond pipes were discovered in an area 20km east of the Orapa kimberlite pipe in Botswana.
They were grouped to form the Damtshaa mine. The word Damtshaa means “water for a tortoise”.
Commissioned in 2002, the mine recorded its first headfeed load on 28 October of that year. Full production was reached in March 2003.
On 25 October 2003, the then vice-president of Botswana, Lt. General Ian Khama Seretse Khama, officially opened Damtshaa.
Damtshaa has been forecast to yield 5 million carats of diamonds over its projected 31-year life, at a rate of 0.161Mcts per annum.
In 2007, 341 000 carats were recovered.
As it is a small operation, Damtshaa is managed from the Orapa mine. It has been incorporated into the Orapa and Letlhakane mines’ safety and environmental programmes, and is ISO14001 certified.
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