The Telegraph reports that giant diamond miner De Beers has been granted a temporary covenant waiver on its £1.8 billion debt and is bringing in advisers to facilitate major restructuring of the diamond company.

The world’s leading diamond miner, which due to the global recession has been hit by a severe downturn in demand for diamonds, has secured a delay on the tests to September.

Banks which approved the waiver include Barclays Capital, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds Banking Group, Scotia Capital and Standard Chartered. In return for the waiver, the banks are to be paid an upfront fee and a higher interest rate on the debt.

De Beers needed the support of two-thirds of its syndicate to win the waiver for the next three months. The extra time will enable the diamond mining company to complete major restructuring.

The Telegraph discloses that De Beers has hired a leading accountancy firm to help with the refinancing of £900m of loans maturing in March next year. The company's remaining loans will mature in 2012.