Richland Resources (LON:RLD) has extended its option to acquire an Australian sapphire project until the end of April next year pending its listing on the Dar es Salaam stock exchange.
Chief executive Bernard Olivier said: "By mutual consent both sides have agreed to extend the option Richland has over the potential acquisition of this Australian sapphire project.
“The extension allows us to complete our Dar es Salaam listing and complete full due diligence within a comfortable timeframe.
“Following our operational success at our tanzanite mine, which has brought the company back into profit, we are now looking at options to expand our capability into new coloured gemstone resources.
“Our objective is to secure resources that can be developed into efficient mines, producing high value stones with limited capex expenditure."
The past 12 months have seen a root and branch transformation of the gemstones group under Olivier.
It culminated in a change of name – Richland was formerly called Tanzanite One – which reflects the company’s shift in focus from being solely a miner and seller of Tanzanite to a broader based coloured stones group.
For the uninitiated Tanzanite is a blue-purple gemstone found in one small area of Tanzania in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro.
While the company is moving into Australian sapphires and has plans to mine Tsavorite, a green emerald-like stone, its bread and butter remains Tanzanite.
It owns the Merelani mine, the largest in the area among a handful of smallholders, which puts it in the unique position of being the ‘market maker’ for Tanzanite.
The stones are cut at Merelani and packaged into parcels before being sold.