Botswana Diamonds has announced a joint venture for the exploration of diamonds in Botswana featuring technology developed by Russian diamond company Alrosa which will be used in Botswana for the first time.



The agreement was signed by Atlas Minerals of Botswana, a wholly owned subsidiary of Botswana Diamonds, and Sunland Holdings of Switzerland, a wholly owned subsidiary of OJSC Alrosa of Russia.



The agreement requires equal contributions from each party, and the joint venture will utilize the exploration technology available to Sunland with the on ground expertise and extensive diamond database held by Botswana Diamonds.



Applications have been lodged for licenses in the Orapa region. The first ground has been obtained and work is expected to commence in the third quarter of this year with an initial budget of $1 million.



Botswana Diamonds Chairman John Teeling said: “We have already been working together for over 18 months on selecting the best ground in the Orapa and Gope areas of Botswana and we have multiple targets. More diamond deposits remain to be discovered in Botswana. The unique technologies being brought to bear on the Kalahari sands improves the chances of success.”