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Canadian Diamond Industry ‘Pillar’ Bob Gannicott Dies
The longtime Dominion Diamond Corp. executive died Wednesday morning at the age 69 from leukemia.
Robert Gannicott, who served as the CEO of Dominion Diamond Corp. for 16 years, died from leukemia Wednesday at the age of 69. (Photo credit: Dominion Diamond Corporation)
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories--Longtime Dominion Diamond Corp. executive Robert Gannicott died Wednesday morning from leukemia. He was 69 years old.
Gannicott served as CEO of Dominion from September 1999 to July 2015.
He also was a member of the company’s board of directors since its inception as a diamond business called Aber Diamond Corp. in 1992, serving as chairman of the board from June 2004 through April of this year, when he stepped down due to health issues.
Gannicott led the company through its growth period after discovering and starting the Diavik Diamonds Project in the Lac de Gras region of the Northwest Territories in 1994 and 1995 and acquiring the Harry Winston brand in 2004.
He also oversaw the acquisition of the Ekati diamond mine, also in the Lac de Gras region, in 2012 and the sale of the Harry Winston brand to Swatch Group a year later.
After that, the company was a pure-play diamond miner again and was renamed Dominion Diamond Corp.
Gannicott is survived by his partner, Geraldine Peacock.
“It is a sad day at Dominion. Bob Gannicott was a visionary and a pillar of the Canadian diamond industry,” Dominion CEO Brendan Bell said. “He built the company from the ground up, taking it from a junior mining company to what is it is today as Canada’s largest independent diamond producer. Bob was an exceptional leader as well as a good friend and mentor. He will be deeply missed by all who had the good fortune to work with him and to know him.”
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