South African stand-off takes sparkle off Petra Diamonds

Miner Petra Diamonds on Monday admitted it had not dug as much out of the ground as it had planned, after labour disputes caused delays to some of its work in South Africa.

The FTSE 250 firm earlier this year warned it was working to resolve a dispute with contractors at its Cullinan mine, where it was building a new processing plant.

It is now in full operation, but the delay meant Petra Diamonds’ output increased 8% to four million carats, below the group’s earlier forecasts of 4.4 million for the year to June 30.

The miner, still reeling from several gruesome deaths at its mines last year, also said it took longer than expected to increase production at one of its other South African mines.

The shares fell 5.91p, or more than 5%, to 103.77p.

Revenue still managed to increase to $477 million (£367 million) from $430.9 million, helped by a healthier diamonds market.

The company, founded and listed by entrepreneur Adonis Pouroulis in 1997, said that the completed plant will now contribute to boosting production this year.

The miner’s chief executive Johan Dippenaar said: “We have now attained the required production levels which will see production rise again substantially.”

Last year Petra vowed to improve safety after a worker was electrocuted and two employees died in an accident involving a crane, all at Williamson in Tanzania, and a boiler attendant was killed in a shaft at the Cullinan mine.