1. Monastery Mine

The board members of Tradepost decided to dedicate the company’s resources to the exploration of kimberlitic and alluvial diamond properties in southern Africa as a whole. As announced on the JSE’s SENS system on 14 April 2008, as a result of this strategy Tradepost has entered into an agreement to acquire Monastary Mine (Pty) Ltd.

After sucessful prospecting Monastery Mine has been Granted a Mining Right on the farm The Monastery and Laura in the Marquard district of the Eastern free State Province. Also see the SENS announcement of the Monastery Kimberlite project's Diamond Resource statement.

SALIENT FEATURES

The Monastery Diamond Mine is located in the Eastern Free State province of South Africa. The project area comprises a main kimberlite pipe, a 2,000 ­metre length dyke (fissure) and a smaller satellite kimberlite pipe. The main deposit at Monastery Mine has a resource of 6 million tonnes of ore (to a depth of 500 metres) with a minimum grade of 25 carats per 100 tonnes. Applying the minimum grade, the diamond content of the Monastery kimberlite ore equates to 1.5 million carats of diamonds.

The Monastery Mine was commercially mined from 1980 to 1983 and 16,000 carats were recovered. Significant discoveries at the Monastery Mine include a 244­ carat blue ­white diamond that was recovered in 1972.  

The Opportunity
Thabex Ltd is a Johannesburg­ based company that owns the Monastery Mine, intending to re­start the Monastery Mine in 2014, and expects to begin producing revenues within 12 months. There is significant plant infrastructure on­ site and a good understanding of the resource; hence a relatively short lead ­time and capital investment are required.

 4ct D IF diamond produced during 1983 (actual size)

A Fifty ­four carat (54ct) 45ct and 25ct carat diamonds, and many other large stones, have also been recovered from the main Monastery kimberlite pipe, which has a surface area of 1.2 hectares and to date has only been mined to a depth of 20 metres. Thabex Ltd’s initial business plan is based upon an open­ pit mining operation to a depth of 50 metres of the indicated resource, though the resource is inferred from 59 to 200 metres and remains open at that depth.

A notable characteristic of the Monastery Mine is the frequency of finds of large, good quality diamonds. To put this in perspective, a single top­ quality 100 ­carat stone could repay the entire capital invest­ment. In addition to the frequency of large, good­ quality diamonds, the Monastery Mine is reported to contain a very high percentage (20%) of gem­ quality diamonds. within 13kms of the town of the Marquard, and services such as electricity and water are readily available, as is a ready work­force.

The following documents are available for due diligence purposes:

• Competent Persons Report (Feasibility, geology and resources statement)
• Mine Works program
• Environmental Management Program
• Social Labour Plan
  
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Rough Diamonds from the Monastery Mine (July 2011)


A9.95 ­carat diamond from the Monastery Mine (August 2011)

Entrance to the Monastery Mine in the Eastern Free State - August 2013

The Diamond Resource
In addition to the main deposit, there is a 2,000 ­metre fissure on the Monastery property that is known to be diamondiferous. It has been tested and preliminary results indicate a grade of 18 carats per 100 tonnes. The secondary kimberlite pipe on the property has not been tested and neither the fissure nor the secondary pipe has been included in the current financial model.
 
Key Points

• Large, high­ quality stones
• Previously mined to only 30m deep in the west and 15m in the east
• Resource is indicated to 50 and inferred to 200m open ended at depth
• Short lead­ time to production and revenue
• Low capital investment required

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