Petra to Sell Finsch Mine After Restart Efforts Fail

Petra Diamonds will put its Finsch mine in South Africa up for sale after business rescue practitioners failed to identify a viable option for restarting operations.

The company’s lenders have approved a plan to sell all of the mine’s assets in an effort to “recover the maximum amount of value possible for Finsch’s creditors,” Petra said in an update Friday.

Petra has secured funding from a creditor to support limited activities at the mine ahead of the sale, including the reclamation of assets. Proceeds from any asset sales will be distributed according to the ranking of claims, with the secured creditor receiving payment first.

The company will also maintain a skeleton crew at the site for a defined period to oversee asset reclamation and prepare the mine for sale.

Petra announced at the end of May that it would close Finsch and place the operation into business rescue as it sought to reduce costs amid a prolonged downturn in the diamond market. The mine primarily produces smaller-sized diamonds, which have come under pressure as demand and prices have weakened.

The company is instead focusing its financial resources on its remaining South African operation, the Cullinan mine, which is known for producing larger, higher-value diamonds.

Finsch is the latest Petra asset to be affected by the weak diamond market. The company offloaded its Williamson mine in Tanzania last year amid liquidity pressures and sold its Koffiefontein mine in South Africa in 2024 after suspending production there the previous year.