Canadian diamonds The Ekati Diamond Mine is Canada's first underground diamond operation, and is owned by Dominion Diamond Mines. To date, Ekati has produced nearly 40 million carats of uncut diamond stones out of 6 open pit mines. The Renard diamond mine is Quebec's first diamond mine. The mine is expected to produce an average of 1.6 million carats per year over an initial 14-year mine life. The Snap Lake Diamond Mine is located northeast of Yellowknife as well, not far from Diavik. Snap lake is owned by De Beers and was their first mine outside of Africa. Snap Lake is also
Ekati Diamond Mine 62-million-year-old kimberlite pipes (Creaser et al., 2004) of the Lac de Gras kimberlite field, most of which lie underneath shallow lakes. Between 1998 and 2009, the mine has produced 40 million carats () of diamonds out of six open pits. As the high grade ore close to surface was depleted, development was completed to access the ore utilizing underground methods. Currently, there is one underground operation (Koala) with open-cut mining occurring in Fox Pit. The mine's current annual production is estimated to be approximately 7.5 million carats () of diamonds. Ekati supplies rough diamonds to the global market through its