GABORONE, Sept 25 – Belgian diamond trader HB Antwerp is restructuring and reducing the scale of its Botswana operations after failing to secure rough diamond supplies from state-owned Okavango Diamond Company (ODC), a senior company executive told Reuters.
The company’s restructuring follows a 2023 agreement announced by then-Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi, under which Botswana was expected to acquire a 24% stake in HB Antwerp and provide the company with 10% of ODC’s rough diamond production for five years.
However, HB Antwerp Managing Partner Boaz Lev said the supply commitment had not materialised despite continued discussions with the Botswana government that took office in October 2024.
“We are performing restructuring and resizing work to match with what we currently have, since whatever was foreseen in 2023 has not materialised to date,” Lev told Reuters.
He did not disclose the number of jobs or operations affected but said the company would undertake “significant restructuring.” Botswana’s Ministry of Minerals and Energy was not immediately available for comment.
Workforce at Risk
The restructuring follows an earlier warning from HB Antwerp over the potential impact of the unresolved diamond supply arrangement. In December, the company notified Botswana’s Commissioner of Labour that it could reduce its workforce by as much as 80% if it failed to receive rough diamonds from ODC by the end of March 2026.
Consultations over the restructuring have been ongoing for approximately two months and were expected to conclude within days, according to Lev.
HB Antwerp has invested more than $10 million in technology and infrastructure in Botswana. Lev said the company would retain its equipment in the country rather than return the machinery to Belgium.
“Our total technology and infrastructure investment exceeds $10-million. We are not sending any machine back to Belgium, and the people who will stay here will be able to operate everything,” he said.
Diamond Processing Model
Founded in 2020, HB Antwerp has developed a business relationship with Lucara Diamond Corporation, purchasing stones weighing 10 carats or more from Lucara’s Karowe mine in central Botswana.
The company uses scanning and planning technology to estimate the polished value of individual stones, with purchase prices linked to those valuations rather than prevailing rough-diamond market prices.
HB Antwerp says the model enables Lucara to generate approximately 40% more revenue than it would from selling the diamonds at conventional rough-market prices.
The Belgian trader had hoped to apply a similar arrangement to diamonds supplied by ODC, but the expected supply agreement has not materialised.
The Botswana Diamond Workers Union had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
The restructuring highlights the operational challenges facing diamond-processing and trading businesses in Botswana when access to consistent rough-stone supply is uncertain, particularly as the country’s diamond industry adjusts to weaker global demand and changing market conditions.
