The Renard diamond mine, in Nord-du-Québec, achieved sales of $313.5 million in 2022. Its production increased by 3.2% in one year, from 1.84 million carats, in 2021 to 1.9 million in 2022.
The average price also improved from US$94 in 2021 to US$125 in 2022.
Once a listed company, Stornoway closed its capital in November 2019 when Osisko Gold Royalties and secured creditors converted their claims into shares of the new company owning the Renard mine.
On November 1, 2019, Osisko became the owner of 35.1% of the shares. The other owners are Investissement Québec, the Caisse de depot et placement and Triple Flag Mining.
The largest gold miner in Quebec, Osisko was created in 2014. It has 181 royalties and metal streams in the Americas.
The Montreal-headquartered company has a diamond stream of 9.6% of production at Renard. “In 2022, Osisko received US$11.5 million ($15.0 million) in net proceeds from the Renard Diamond Stream,” reads Osisko’s Q4 2022 MD&A.
The mine located 350 km north of Chibougamau has experienced a succession of difficulties since its opening in 2016.
Its financial difficulties led it to restructure the share capital of its owner Stornoway in the fall of 2019. Small shareholders suffered greatly in the process. Stornoway was dragging $300 million in debt. The construction of the mine had cost 1 billion.
The mine temporarily ceased operations from April to September 2020, due to COVID-19 and the low sale price of diamonds.
Thereafter, production increased and prices firmed. An improvement in the global diamond price was expected after 2020 following the closure of Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine in Australia, which has long been the largest in the world.
There are now four years of life left at the Renard mine given the current state of the reserves.
“The outlook assumes that production from the Renard Diamond Stream will have ceased by 2027 (although there are still opportunities to extend the mine life that are being explored by the operator),” says Gold Royalties. Osisko in documents filed with stock exchange authorities.