“We are just fine tuning, but we will strike a deal,” Masisi said in an interview in Marrakech, Morocco. “It is imperative that a deal gets struck because it is in the interests of both parties.”
Read: De Beers, Botswana Extend Diamond Sales Agreement by One Year
Botswana’s mines contribute about two-thirds of De Beers’ annual rough-diamond production. Botswana now wants to leverage its control of the diamond reserves to wring more concessions from one of the world’s top diamond suppliers.
That doesn’t mean the government wants to break ties with De Beers, Masisi said. The government is seeking adjustments in the terms of the joint venture, and more value added to the stones in Botswana through local processing to help boost job-creation and economic growth, he said.
“It’s really value addition, so the resources you have been mining, we want to use our knowledge base to yield greater returns,” Masisi said. “That’s the conversation De Beers and ourselves are talking about.”
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