Cuango – Sociedade Mineira do Cuango (SMC), located in the eastern province of Lunda Norte, doubled its turnover with the sale of 23,000 carats of diamonds, in February this year, to USD 12 million compared to the same period in 2020.
The turnover represents an increase of USD 6 million dollars (50%) for the company’s financial capital, compared to the same period (February 2020), which registered USD 6.7 million resulting from the sale of 19,000 carats.
According to the chairman of the Management Board of SMC, Hélder Carlos, the increase in current production and turnover are the result of the operational “reengineering” and the redefinition of the work model developed by the company’s management during the critical period of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
The manager was speaking to the press, as part of the field visit that journalists from some media houses made to the mining regions, from the 16th to the 25th of this month.
He pointed out the stability of the diamond price in the market as another factor that has contributed to the achievement of positive results.
To the manager, the gradual return to good results is a relief for the company, which was on the brink of bankruptcy during the critical period of the covid-19 pandemic in the country.
“In this period, precisely in July 2020, it was a particular moment of anguish, because we felt that the company was rapidly heading towards bankruptcy”, he recalled.
As a result of this regeneration process, he recalled, as of September 2020, SMC’s production levels began to improve, a fact that allowed the year to end with the production of around 20,000 carats.
For fiscal year 2021, the Angolan diamond company expects to produce around 247,000 carats and raise nearly 75 million dollars, with the average price estimated at USD 350 per carat.
With the planned production, it was estimated that an estimated revenue of US$79.5 million would be obtained, with an average price of US$350/carat.
On the contrary, the estimated revenue dropped to USD 51.5 million, which represents a loss of around USD 28 million, with the average price of around 314 dollars/carat.
In the same period, Cuango was expected to invest more than 10 million dollars, with four million for the acquisition of new equipment to explore new areas and six million for the replacement of spare parts.
This investment was reduced by around 9.4 million dollars, achieved through a feasibility study and a new work model devised by SMC’s management at the time.
As a result of the negative results, the payment of taxes and fees stood at 5.15 million dollars, against the 6.4 million dollars (12.5%) foreseen in 2020.
Established in 2004, Sociedade Mineira do Cuango employs 665 workers (14 women).
Source: Angola Press News Agency