63,000 Carats Indicated Resource Estimated in Joint Operations Area and Retirement of Director

Jan 4, 2007 | 2007, Corporate News

(Cape Town, January 4, 2007) — Diamond Fields International Ltd. (DFI:TSX) (“DFI” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that independent consulting company SRK Consulting (“SRK”) has estimated an Indicated Resource of 63,000 carats in the Diaz Prospect 1 (DP1) joint operations area in ML 111 offshore Luderitz, Namibia, derived from sampling conducted under the previously announced joint operations agreement with Bonaparte Diamond Mines NL (“Bonaparte”).

Details of the Indicated Resource calculation, including the key assumptions, parameters and methods used to estimate the Indicated Resource, are contained in the NI 43-101 technical report entitled “Resource Estimates for the Diaz Prospect 1, Namibia” dated December, 2006 prepared by SRK for DFI and Bonaparte, a copy of which has been filed under DFI’s profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Key points from SRK report:

  • Indicated Resource of 63,000 carats of newly defined resource has been independently estimated in the Diaz Prospect 1 area in ML111, Namibia.
  • Total resource area of 315,000m2 at average grade of 0.2ct/m2.
  • 76% of total resource (48,000 carats) occurs at an average grade of 0.43ct/m2 in an area of 111,500m2 within defined resource area.
  • Anticipated 30% increase in estimated grades during mining.
  • Large average stone size of 0.47 carats per stone.

SRK’s NI 43-101 compliant Indicated Resource estimate of 63,000 carats occurs within 7 discrete zones in DP1 with a combined area of 315,000m2 and an average grade of 0.2 ct/m2. This global grade exceeds the assay cut-off of 0.1 ct/m2 which is normally applied to offshore diamond resource estimates. Application of an assay cut-off of 0.2ct/m2 shows that within this global resource area, at least 76% (48,000 carats) of the resource is contained in an area of approximately 111,500m2 at an average grade of 0.43ct/m2. SRK anticipates that grades achieved during mining could be in the order of 30% higher than estimated as a result of operational experience in the Namibian offshore environment.

SRK comments that these resource areas are all readily accessible to airlift mining, as employed by the Company’s mining ship, MV DF Discoverer. The diamondiferous gravels generally lie at shallow depths within relatively thin average sediment thickness ranging from 0.5m to 2.5m conducive to high production rates and lower unit costs.

The average size of the diamonds in DP1 is estimated by SRK at 0.47ct/stone (arithmetic mean) which is significantly higher than displayed in most deposits delineated to date in the Luderitz area. The diamonds recovered in sampling have an average Namibian Government Diamond Valuation of US$318/ct.

Dr. A.E. Annels is responsible for the resource estimates contained within the SRK report and is the designated Qualified Person. Dr. Annels has 39 years of postgraduate experience in exploration and mining geology and in particular, has been involved in the auditing of off-shore diamond projects and the estimation of their resources for the last 6 years. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy (now IOM3) and thus meets all the requirements of a Qualified Person in terms of NI 43-101. SRK has given its approval to the reference to the SRK report and information derived therefrom in this announcement in the form and context in which it appears.

The Company is currently in discussions with Bonaparte to incorporate the DP1 resources in its mine plan by concluding the mining agreement envisaged in the joint operations agreement previously announced in a news release dated August 18, 2006.

The Company also announces the retirement from the board of directors of John Collier. Mr. Collier had a long and exceptional career in the mining industry and the Company has certainly benefited over the past few years from his wisdom, guidance, knowledge and experience. The board of directors would like to thank John for his excellent and diligent contribution to the Company and wishes him very best wishes in all his future endeavours.

DATED January 04, 2007.

DIAMOND FIELDS INTERNATIONAL LTD.

“Roger J. Daniel”

Roger J. Daniel, President and CEO
For further information, contact Roger Daniel at +27 21 425 1990
Website: www.diamondfields.com

Forward-Looking Statements:
Statements in this release that are forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors identified in Diamond Fields’ periodic filings with Canadian Securities Regulators. Such forward-looking information represents management’s best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Diamond Fields does not assume the obligation to update any forward-looking statement.

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