Indian diamond manufacturer Choron Group has acquired what it calls a “significant shareholding” in Burgundy Diamond Mines, the Australian company that recently bought the Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories.
Choron made the purchase through a private family investment vehicle named Kama Capital. The investment helped finance Burgundy’s 100% acquisition of Arctic Canadian Diamond Company, the former owner of Ekati.
“The idea is to bring the upstream, the midstream, and the downstream together,” Choron CEO Anshul Gandhi tells JCK. “We want to promote Canadian diamonds throughout the pipeline.”
Gandhi says that while Choron will manufacture some of Burgundy’s production, the mine will continue to sell to other companies, and through auctions and tenders.
Burgundy Diamond Mines paid $136 million for the mine in March. The purchase included Canadamark, the origin verification system.
The first mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories, Ekati was originally scheduled to close in 2025, though current plans call for it to remain open until 2029. Burgundy has suggested it could extend the mine’s life for another decade.
Top: An arial view of Ekati (photo courtesy of Choron Group)
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