Argyle diamond mine

The Argyle Diamond Mine was a <a href="/facts/Diamond_mine/AfDclNqd">diamond mine</a> located in the East <a href="/facts/Kimberley_(Western_Australia)/Rmq4bDQI">Kimberley</a> region in the remote north of <a href="/facts/Western_Australia/1ouCbwNh">Western Australia</a>. Argyle was at times the largest <a href="/facts/Diamond/IBUdnd1y">diamond</a> producer in the world by volume (14 million carats in 2018), although the proportion of gem-quality diamonds was low. It was the only known significant source of <a href="/facts/Pink_diamond/96xrYoMb">pink</a> and <a href="/facts/Red_diamond/cSqDd5Rk">red</a> diamonds (producing over 90% of the world's supply), and additionally provided a large proportion of other naturally coloured diamonds, including champagne, cognac and rare blue diamonds.
Mining operations ceased in November 2020, after 37 years of operations and producing more than 865 million carats of rough diamonds. Mine operator <a href="/facts/Rio_Tinto_Group/CCYJBbUL">Rio Tinto</a> plans to decommission the mine and rehabilitate the site at least through 2025.
The Argyle diamond mine is also notable for being the first successful commercial diamond mine exploiting a <a href="/facts/Volcanic_pipe/qtfSfHH1">volcanic pipe</a> of <a href="/facts/Lamproite/V739vCuA">lamproite</a>, rather than the more usual <a href="/facts/Kimberlite/y56KRjuR">kimberlite</a> pipe; much earlier attempts to mine diamonds from <a href="/facts/Crater_of_Diamonds_State_Park/ECa0NCmD">a lamproite pipe</a> in <a href="/facts/Arkansas/Qun124UP">Arkansas</a>, United States, were commercially unsuccessful. The Argyle mine is owned by the <a href="/facts/Rio_Tinto_Group/CCYJBbUL">Rio Tinto Group</a>, a diversified mining company which also owns the <a href="/facts/Diavik_Diamond_Mine/8dTmERDt">Diavik Diamond Mine</a> in Canada and the <a href="/facts/Murowa_diamond_mine/Im1ItKqS">Murowa diamond mine</a> in Zimbabwe.

Argyle diamond mine open-in-new

Argyle diamond mine