Canadian diamonds a 20% ownership of the mine, and since its discovery and start of operation in 1998, Ekati has produced over 40 million carats of diamonds. The discovery and later success of this diamond mine caught the attention of other major mining operations, and more massive mines were opened and fully operational within 10 years. Located approximately 53 miles southeast of the Snap Lake Diamond Mine, the Gahcho Kue Diamond Mine Project is one of the richest diamond mines in Canada with an expected lifespan of 11 years. It is estimated that 54,000,000 carats will be recovered during the mine's lifetime.
Permafrost down to . Discontinuous permafrost is often further divided into "extensive discontinuous permafrost", where permafrost covers between 50 and 90 percent of the landscape and is usually found in areas with mean annual temperatures between , and "sporadic permafrost", where permafrost cover is less than 50 percent of the landscape and typically occurs at mean annual temperatures between . In soil science, the sporadic permafrost zone is abbreviated SPZ and the extensive discontinuous permafrost zone DPZ. Exceptions occur in "un-glaciated" Siberia and Alaska where the present depth of permafrost is a relic of climatic conditions during glacial ages where winters