Stornoway Diamonds Inc. says it is suspending operations at its Renard mine in northern Quebec.
The Montreal-based diamond company says 75 of the 500 workers will stay on board to maintain the mine’s assets and facilitate a return to normal operations.
That leaves some 425 workers temporarily laid off from the mine, which sits about 700 kilometres north of Quebec City as the crow flies.
The 37-year-old company attributes the shutdown to growing uncertainty around global diamond prices.
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The price of rough diamonds — unpolished, uncut stones — has plummeted over the past 18 months, falling by nearly a third since March 2022 to lows not seen in years as post-pandemic consumers steer clear of new luxury goods.
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Stornoway says it has begun to place itself under the protection of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act in order to restructure its business and turn its finances around.
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