DTP, govt in diamond trade talks

Business Week has learnt that negotiations between the Diamond Technology Park (DTP) and government, via its Okavango Diamond Company, are ongoing for auctions of diamonds from the new bourse.Okavango is the fledgling state-owned entity which will market and sell between 10 and 15 percent of Debswana's run of mine production, under a 10-year deal signed between government and De Beers last September.

Prior to the deal, all Debswana production was marketed through De Beers' Diamond Trading Company system, but from the second half of 2013, Okavango will independently auction the portion of production set aside for government.