Petra Diamonds’ sales rose 13% for the full fiscal year as the miner recovered a higher proportion of rough and sold goods it had held over from the previous period due to low demand.

Revenue increased to $366 million for the 12 months that ended June 30, the company reported Tuesday. Sales volume grew 36% to 3.2 million carats. 

The company, which operates the Cullinan and Finsch mines in South Africa as well as the Williamson mine in Tanzania, attributed a portion of the rise to the completion of a ramp-up to steady processing at Williamson. Petra also had extra rough during the period it had held back from sale at the end of the previous year, when prices were low due to lackluster rough demand.  

The miner received a small boost from the revision of last year’s figure, which included sales of rough from the Koffiefontein mine in South Africa. That operation has since been discontinued. 

In the fourth fiscal quarter, from April to June, revenue increased 124% to $112 million, while sales volume climbed 82% to 1 million carats. The miner’s inventories decreased to 286,303 carats at the end of the quarter from 715,222 carats on June 30, 2023.  

Production grew 2% to 2.73 million carats for the fiscal year due to the increase in ore processing at Williamson, slightly below the miner’s guidance. 

Petra expects output for the new fiscal year ending June 2025 to be between 2.8 million and 3.1 million carats, down from the 3.4 million to 3.7 million it originally estimated. The decrease is the result of the closure of Koffiefontein.  

“Current diamond market weakness is expected to continue through to the end of the calendar year with some price volatility,” said Petra CEO Richard Duffy. “We expect diamond prices to show modest recovery in the new year with market fundamentals providing pricing support in the medium and longer term. We are looking forward to addressing the challenges ahead of us from a position of strength, with world-class assets that have long-term potential…and an ability to withstand market and capital cycles.” 

Image: Inspection work being carried out at the Cullinan mine. (Petra Diamonds)