Diamonds are so hard to find that explorers have pretty much given up trying.
More than $7 billion has been plowed into the hunt for the gem since 2000, according to top supplier De Beers, and the results have been meager, with no major finds. That’s led producers including BHP Billiton Ltd. to pack up their maps and drills and head for home. The amount spent looking for diamond- rich kimberlite formations underground has dropped by half since 2007, when exploration investment topped $1 billion.
The diamond industry is facing what seems to be a perfect storm from many threats: decreased supply as a result of aging established mines and a lack of major new discoveries, increased demand from India and China, undisclosed synthetics being introduced into the pipeline (and nobody seems to know where they come from, of course). It’s certainly going to be very interesting times ahead.