Rio Tinto to keep hold of diamonds business

24th Jun 2013 07:15

Diversified mining giant Rio Tinto has decided to keep hold of its diamonds business saying that market fundamentals remain robust, with growing demand for luxury goods in Asia and continued strong demand in the US.The company, which operates a fully integrated diamonds business from exploration through to sales and marketing, came to this conclusion after a strategic review which considered a range of options, including a potential sale.Rio began the review in March saying that it was looking at creating more value through a different ownership structure given the scale of the division.The Chief Executive of the Diamonds & Minerals division, Alan Davies, said: "We have valuable, high-quality diamonds businesses that are well positioned to capitalise on the positive market outlook. "After considering a number of alternative strategic ownership options it is clear the best path to generate maximum value for our shareholders is to retain these businesses."Rio said it is one of the world's major diamond producers through its 100% holding in the Argyle mine in Australia, a 60% interest in Diavik in Canada and a 78% stake in Murowa in Zimbabwe.