It said the latest recoveries included a 28 carat stone from the North zone. It follows the recent recovery of an 89.75ct yellow diamond from the south-east zone and two light pink diamonds from the North zone. 

"These recoveries, together with the recovery of a 3ct pink diamond in the historic bulk sampling conducted in 2008-2012 … are proof that Mothae also hosts pink diamonds," the company said.

The ongoing bulk sampling programme is designed to expand the project's 1.04 million carat resource established last year.

Diamonds recovered during the programme will be included in the first Mothae sale parcel slated for the fourth quarter.

Lucapa has said it is on track for commercial diamond production at Mothae, 30%-owned by the Kingdom of Lesotho, later this year.

The mine will complement Lucapa's 40% stake in the Lulo diamond mine in Angola, its 80%-owned Brooking lamproite exploration project in Western Australia and the Orapa Area F early-stage project in Botswana.

The company had US$10 million cash at the end of June, excluding the $10 million in cash and receivables held by the Lulo mining company.

It has said it was continuing discussions with a South African financier regarding a project-level financing proposal for Mothae and expected the discussions to conclude this quarter.

Shares in the company have ranged between A20-34c over the past year and were unchanged in Australian trade around midday at 25.5c.