Afgem Limited was incorporated in South Africa as a private company in April 1998. In September 1998, it was converted into a public company and went on to list on the JSE in August 2000. At this time the primary business of Afgem was the mining, cutting, polishing and marketing of the rare gemstone tanzanite. In May 2004, this business was sold to TanzaniteOne Limited, a company now listed on the London Stock Exchange’s Alternative Investment Market.
Subsequent to this, management actively pursued alternative investment opportunities in the diamond mining sector. In June of 2005 Afgem entered into agreements with Rex Diamond Mining Corporation, a company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, to acquire the South African diamond operations of Rex Mining. These assets included three mines:
- Loxton Exploration, subsequently renamed Simolotse Mine, an underground fissure mine, northwest of Kimberley in the Northern Cape Province;
- Bellsbank Consolidated Diamond Mine, subsequently renamed Bokang Mine, also northwest of Kimberley in the Northern Cape Province; and
- Rex Diamond Mine, subsequently renamed Agisanang mine, which is situated between Welkom and Theunissen in the Free State Province.