Stellar buys Petra’s 51% stake in Kono mine

Stellar Diamonds is buying out Petra Diamonds’ 51 percent stake in the Kono project in Sierra Leone, following an agreement between the two entities. The deal involved Petra buying 4.4 million of Stellar shares for $1.4 million, and subsequently holding 4.45 percent in Stellar, for its stake in Kono.

Petra undertook to selling its stake, as it believed the project could not add to its planned increase in production from the current 1 million carats to 3 million carats, reports say. The sale would give Stellar complete ownership of the mine, which the company believes has potential as being a long-term contributor to its growth plans to develop its kimberlite projects in West Africa, reports add.

The sale also allows Petra first option to joint venture any project in Stellar’s portfolio. The deal is likely to be completed by May 14, reports add.