Lucara Diamond Corp. has been working with HB Antwerp since 2020, forming an offtake agreement in which a portion of the rough from its Karowe mine in Botswana goes straight to the Belgian manufacturer for cutting, and a percentage of the polished proceeds return to the miner. In March, the Botswana government bought a 24% stake in HB. However, directly following HB's split from cofounder and managing partner Oded Mansori in early September, Lucara terminated its rough-supply agreement with HB, citing a "material breach of financial commitments" by the manufacturer. Since then — and with HB reinstating Mansori in early October — there has been media speculation that the Botswana government is pressuring Lucara to reconnect with the Belgian firm. How that deal will play out remains to be seen.