The world’s largest diamond exploration vessel – the SS Nujoma – will soon begin exploring for diamond deposits in Namibian waters. The US$157 million vessel, which was launched by Anglo American’s diamond unit, De Beers, is the first in the company’s fleet of five other vessels to be dedicated to exploration and sampling.
It will enable Debmarine Namibia (a 50/50 joint venture between the Namibian government and De Beers group) to secure a future diamond supply in the country by allowing even more of Namibia’s high-quality offshore diamonds to be discovered and mined.
According to a company statement, the 12 000 ton vessel incorporates a range of unique technologies that enable faster sampling, larger samples and more information per sample to be collected, compared to other diamond-sampling vessels.
At 133m in length, it can accommodate a crew of 80, and includes a helicopter deck suitable for coastguard aircraft, such as the Sikorsky S-61.
