De Beers said on Monday that it would pause production for two years at its Venetia mine, which employs about 3,500 people and accounts for about 10 percent of the company’s output, to cut costs. It will also reduce capital expenditure for the site. The move comes as Anglo American seeks to sell De Beers as part of a turnaround that will refocus the mining major on copper, the industrial metal essential to fast‑rising electricity use and data centres powering artificial intelligence.

Al Cook, chief executive of De Beers Group, pointed to “protracted challenging conditions” as he said the company was making changes to “ensure greater business resilience in the near term, while supporting long‑term value creation.” He added that signs of consumer demand growth in the US and beyond are encouraging. Diamond prices have fallen because of slowing demand, especially in China, and competition from lab‑grown gems that can be made and sold much more cheaply than natural stones. WWW International Diamond Consultants’ rough diamond price index is down by about 50 percent from the record highs of 2022.

De Beers said it had cut more than $100mn of annual overhead costs from the business since 2024, while also investing in marketing to boost the allure of natural diamonds. The halt at Venetia follows De Beers’ decision earlier this year to pause the third phase of the expansion of its Gahcho Kué mine in Canada, a similar‑sized asset. Anglo cut the value of De Beers by half in February, the third writedown in three years. Shares in Anglo were trading broadly flat in early London trading on Monday.