Perth: Merlin Diamonds Ltd., owner of the Merlin diamond mine in the Northern Territory, Australia, announced they had raised approximately $5.5 million from its Entitlements Offer to shareholders in January. The funds give the Merlin diamond mine "the necessary financial flexibility to progress its operational and corporate objectives" said the company in a statement.
The Offer served as an opportunity for shareholders “to subscribe for 1 new share with ½ an option for every 2 shares held at the record date. The price of the new share with an attaching option is 1.3 cents and the option will have an exercise price of 1.3 cents.”
Earlier this month the mine announced the recovery of five green diamonds from the Kaye pit, amongst them intense greens, the largest of which was 1.4 cts. The highly encouraging recovery follows Merlin’s previous discovery of a rare blue diamond in December 2016, demonstrating the mine’s potential for producing valuable colored diamonds. Merlin Diamonds recommenced operations in September 2016. The largest diamond ever found in Australia, a 104.73 carat white gem-quality stone was recovered from Merlin in 2002 and was valued at about US$525,000.
