Russia's JSC Pomorye Diamonds plans exploration drilling this coming winter

NOVOSIBIRSK. Nov 11 (Interfax) - JSC Pomorye Diamonds (Arkhangelsk) plans to start exploration drilling at one of three prospective license areas in the coming winter of 2025-2026, the company's general director Vladimir Shchukin told Interfax.

"This is the Nikolsky area; we are starting with it immediately. I hope the very first well will yield a result," Shchukin said, noting that it is in this area that a so-called adjacent anomaly has been discovered, indicating the presence of diamonds.

At the three areas - Nikolsky, Davydovsky, and Priozersky - nine first-priority anomalies and around two dozen second-priority anomalies have been identified, which may also prove to be prospective, Shchukin said.

The total reserves of the three areas under category C2 amount to 115 million carats, which is slightly less than the previous estimate (120 million carats) with a content of 1 carat per tonne, as well as 160 million carats under categories P1, P2 and P3, he said.

"If a [diamond-bearing] pipe is discovered, we immediately move to the evaluation stage; this means at least 9-12 new wells. We work the material to extract diamonds, determine their content and quality, after this the ore body will be delineated under category C2, we will have the value and quantity of diamonds, and we can then calculate the level of ore mass, the amount of the diamonds themselves. This is recorded on the state balance with the GKZ [State Commission for Mineral Reserves], and a preliminary feasibility study of the mining conditions is prepared," he said.

After this, the company must obtain a new license based on the discovery document and conduct further exploration. "There will already be [categories] C1 and B, and all the rest," he said.

At the same time, judging by the indicator minerals, there will be a completely new source of diamond potential, Shchukin said.

The executive director of JSC Pomorye Diamonds, Sergei Nikulin, in turn told Interfax that "a certain result has been achieved" as part of the pre-IPO which is to be completed on November 28, but the company has adjusted its strategy for attracting investment.

"Funds are being raised, but not at the [required] speed, so we said let's focus not on a 'people's IPO', but on large funds, major players, for this we need a geological audit by academicians," he said.

At the same time, the company may not need the entire amount of 900 million to 1 billion rubles it planned to attract, Nikulin said.

"We currently need 250 million rubles for the current round to start drilling this winter; if we find an anomaly, the amounts will change. We need 1 billion to drill all the anomalies and all the license areas. As soon as we find diamond-bearing kimberlite, the investment situation changes dramatically," he said.

JSC Pomorye Diamonds was created to attract investments, "for the convenient entry of investors into the project." According to the share placement presentation, the 100% subsidiary of JSC Pomorye Diamonds is Arktikgeopoisk LLC (Arkhangelsk), which holds three subsoil use licenses in the Arkhangelsk region.

Pomorye Diamonds is co-owned by several private individuals.

According to the company's presentation, its mineral resource base consists of three subsoil license areas: Izhmozersky, Davydovsky, and Nikolsky, located in the north of the Arkhangelsk region within the Zimneberezhny diamond-bearing shore. Nine highly prospective anomalies have been identified in this territory, each potentially being a separate deposit. The Lomonosov diamond deposits and the Grib deposit are located 50 km from the company's areas.

According to the company's presentation, four diamonds, fragments of kimberlites, and a full set of kimberlite indicator minerals (picroilmenite, pyrope, phlogopite and others) have been discovered at its license areas.

It is planned that the investment will be utilized in four stages. Stage 1 involves the purchase of drilling rigs, logistics setup, and prospecting and evaluative geological work at two anomalies. Stages 2 and 3 involve work on the remaining seven anomalies. Stage 4 is evaluation drilling. The company plans to complete the work by registering the reserves with the state balance in 2029.