Cullinan mine to drive down debt

The owner of one of the world’s most famous diamond mines could be about a decade away from clearing its multi-million-dollar debts.

The miner, which acquired Cullinan from De Beers, borrowed heavily to revamp the facility and began mining a new section of ore last July.

Petra, the owner, said debts from the mine stood at around 65% of its overall $650 million (about R9 bn) in borrowing, which would represent about $420 million.