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The intrinsic attraction of tanzanite and the finite nature of a single known resource at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro in northern Tanzania are undoubtedly part of tanzanite’s allure.
TanzaniteOne is the largest and most scientifically advanced miner and supplier of rough tanzanite, a unique position that affords it the opportunity to support and influence the entire channel, from mine to market, ensuring that maximum stakeholder value is achieved at each stage of the process.
Our leading position in the tanzanite market has ensured TanzaniteOne the recognition and respect of its peers and provides the opportunity for expansion into a broader range of PCGs located at various key sights around the world.
Objective To be world’s leading premium coloured gemstone mining company
Tanzanite Strategy Continued exploration, expansion and improvement of the available skills, resource base and market positioning of this magnificent product.
PCG Strategy As the technical and scientific leader in coloured gemstone mining and with solid stakeholder relations TanzaniteOne’s business model is uniquely suited to explore and capitalise on the numerous available opportunities for growth and the realization of shareholder value.
The strategic move in to new premium coloured gemstones has commenced with the move into tsavorite, a brilliant green gemstone also found in Tanzania with a remarkably similar geology to tanzanite, yet enjoying a current price per carat of approximately three times that of tanzanite.
The world's only known source of tanzanite is situated in the Simanjiro district of Tanzania, 70km south-east of Arusha and 16km south of Kilimanjaro International Airport. In 1990, the Tanzanian Government demarcated the tanzanite mining area into four blocks: A, B, C and D, measuring approximately 5km by 2km in total. anzaniteOne owns the mining licence for Block C, the largest block at the centre of resource.
Tanzanite is located within a relatively complex geological environment and is found in 'chocolate-tablet' boudin structure, typically located in the hinges of isoclinal folds (folds dipping in the same direction) present in the ore body.
TanzaniteOne has made significant strides towards delineating the tanzanite deposit. Deep hole drilling, geophysics, geochemical analyses and structural and geological mapping have all increased our level of geological knowledge and confidence. our drilling programme has shown that the lower horizon, which hosts the economic mineralisation, extends three times further dip than initially anticipated. This databank of proprietary geological know-how is unrivalled and will become more important than ever as mining operations deepen and the artisanal mining styles employed on the other licence blocks become redundant.
A conservative estimate of TanzaniteOne's resource, and as published at the time of listing on AIM in 2004, would place the figure at 63-83 million carats. At an average price of $ 12/carat in the rough, this represents an estimated $756 million to $996 million in the ground.
Mining
The mine is considered a modern, low-cost operation and boasts an exemplary safety record. It applies international best practice in the design of its employment, social and environmental policies. It is also the first and largest fully taxpaying mining company in Tanzania. Mining currently takes place through five shafts: Delta, Askiri, Main, CT and Bravo shafts. Shafts are sunk at an angle of 42° along dip of the JWZ mineralisation zone.The shafts are fitted with tracks and material is removed via a hoist and inclined shaft structure. Drives are driven along strike at an angle of ±16° along the plunge of the fold noses. A monorope (endless looped rope and pulley) system is used to remove materials in bags from the mining fronts (in each of the drives, raizes and winzes) towards the inclined shaft ore pass infrastructure.
Ore passes are developed over the shaft to ensure available surge capacity and improved mining efficiencies. Blasting is used as the main method of mine advancement. Once favourable boudin structures are approached pneumatic drilling and handpicking is used to remove tanzanite as carefully as possible. It is anticipated that current enhancements to mining operations aimed at introducing greater mechanisation, including the introduction of a scoop-tram and greater emphasis on selective stoping, will result in a significant increase in material passing through the processing plant and sorthouse.
Processing
Processing and sorting take place on site within purpose-built infrastructure and facilities. The ore treatment plant, which includes a dense media separator (DMS), has a current capacity estimated at approximately 10,000 tonnes per month, on a single shift. The DMS concentrate passes through a fully automated optical sorting system, where after the “super concentrate” is then hand sorted and graded, ready for export. Rough is sorted both manually and using a fully automated rough tanzanite optical sorting and primary grading system, a world first in the coloured gemstone industry.
Outlook
Growth Opportuntities

Tanzania
| Board of Directors | |
| Ami Mpungwe | Executive Chairman |
| Edward Nealon | Non-Executive Deputy Chairman |
| Bernard Olivier | Executive Director |
| Nickolas Sibley | Non-Executive Director |
| Ryke Zane Swanepoel | Managing Director |
| Management | |
| Wessel Marais | TanzaniteOne Mining, General Manager |
| Faustus Felician Rutahindurwa | Chief Geologist |
| Glenham Shaw | Processing Plant Manager |
| Emmanuel Ernest Mtawali | Civil and Construction Manager |
| Lusekelo Mwakalukwa | Corporate Governance Manager |
| Farai Manyemba | Finance Manager (International Finances) |
Company AddressClarendon House,
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Additional Address/Key ContactGeneral Enquiries, Investor Relations, Media Relations and Corporate Affairs: |
Year EndDecember 31 |
Nominated BrokersEvolution Securities Limited | Nominated AdvisorsEvolution Securities Limited |