Company Profile

Overview

Koidu Holdings S.A. is a diamond mining company with mineral interests in the Republic of Sierra Leone and is wholly owned by BSG Resources Limited (www.bsgresources.com).

BSG Resources Limited is a global natural resource company with a diverse portfolio of operations, focused in the fields of mining, energy and engineering services. Products include nickel, copper, cobalt, diamond, iron-ore, bauxite and steel. Through its listed subsidiaries, Bateman Litwin NV and Bateman Engineering NV (www.batemanengineering.com), BSG Resources also provides engineering services and turn-key solutions to the natural resources industry.

Koidu Holdings operates the Koidu Kimberlite Project in the Kono District, under a 25-year mining lease agreement. In March 2004, the Company was awarded an Exploration Licence for the Tongo Diamond Field through a competitive bidding process. In addition, the Company holds two alluvial diamond Exploration Licences on the Sewa River and another in an area away from the present main drainage systems, the Matemu Exploration Licence.

Corporate Governance

Koidu Holdings S.A's corporate governance framework ensures that its operations are conducted in a way that is consistent with the rule of law and clearly articulates the division of responsibilities among different supervisory, regulatory and enforcement authorities. In this regard the corporate governance framework protects and facilitates the exercise of stakeholders' and shareholders' rights. All shareholders have the opportunity to obtain effective redress for any violation of their rights. The corporate governance framework ensures that timely and accurate disclosure is made on all matters regarding the legal entity, including the financial situation, performance, ownership and overall governance.

The corporate governance framework ensures the strategic guidance of the company, the effective monitoring of management by the board, and the board's accountability to the company and the shareholders.

About Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone is bordered by Guinea in the North & East and Liberia in the South East.

Sierra Leone is a small democratic state with a land area of 27,653 square miles (71,621 square kilometers) and a population of 6,144,562. The country is situated along the West coast of Africa. It is bordered by Guinea in the North and East, Liberia in the southeast and the Atlantic Ocean in the southwest and west. Sierra Leone has a tropical climate with diverse environment ranging from savannah to rainforest. Colonized by Britain, it became independent in 1961, almost 30 years after diamonds were first discovered in the country.

The 'Lion Mountain' as it was christened by Pedro Da Cintra in 1462, has long been renowned for its rich endowment in minerals, such as diamonds, titanium, bauxite, iron ore,gold, chromite and rutile. Since the end of the war, the country has relied on companies like Koidu Holdings for its recovery from the devastation left by the conflict. Sierra Leoneans have elected a new president; Ernest Bai Koroma of the All Peoples Congress, who seems poised to usher the country into sustainable socio-economic development. Following the blazing of the trail by Koidu Holdings in 2002, several foreign companies have invested in the country thereby reducing the rate of unemployment. Sierra Leoneans today are full of optimism for the future thanks to foreign investors like Koidu Holdings, which remains the highest employer in the country.

Famous Diamonds of Sierra Leone


The Star of Sierra Leone weighed 968.9 carats and is the third largest rough diamond ever discovered	A beautiful 84.05 carat octahedron recovered from No. 1 Pipe in February 2006

Two of the world's ten largest and most famous rough diamonds were discovered in the gravels of the Woyie River flowing through the town of Koidu. Tributaries of the Woyie River have drained the areas surrounding the Koidu kimberlite pipes and dykes over millions of years, concentrating diamonds and other heavy minerals derived from the kimberlite into rich alluvial diamond deposits.

The first large diamond to be recovered from the Woyie River in March 1943 weighed 249.25 carats, followed by an even larger 532 carat stone in June of the same year. The Woyie River Diamond, weighing 770 carats, was found in January 1945 and, at that time, was the largest alluvial diamond known. After a hiatus of almost 27 years, the fourth and largest diamond to be recovered from the Woyie River presented itself on the picking table of the Diminco recovery plant. The Star of Sierra Leone, as it became known, weighed 968.9 carats and is currently ranked the third largest rough diamond in the world, with the Woyie River Diamond in sixth place.

Although being of the finest colour, both the Star of Sierra Leone and the Woyie River Diamond contained flaws and impurities which dictated the number and shape of the polished stones finally separated from the original rough diamond. The Star of Sierra Leone was first cut into an emerald shaped stone weighing 143.2 carats but was later re-cut due to an internal flaw into seventeen smaller stones. Six of the stones, including the largest which weighed 53.96 carats, were incorporated into the Star of Sierra Leone Brooch. The Woyie River Diamond was cut into 30 gem stones, the largest of which was an emerald cut weighing 31.35 carats and became known as the Victory diamond.