Tales of Ekati

By Jude T. Feld

Fire Into Ice – Chuck Fipke’s true story told by noted author Vernon Frolick

Chuck Fipke, the owner of Tale of Ekati, has been described as, “near-sighted, goateed, short and as tough as an oak stump.” He is a former prospector, who discovered the existence of diamonds near Lac de Gras in Canada’s Northwest Territories. With at least 25 years of more of producing $500 million worth of diamonds a year, you might better describe the Edmonton, Alberta geologist as “a billionaire diamond magnate.”

Fipke searched for the jewels from 1970 until 1991 when diamonds were discovered at Point Lake. It took five years of Canadian governmental red tape for Fipke to gain approval for continued exploration and then when granted, another two years to get the mine up and running.

Named the Ekati Diamond Mine, it is Canada’s first diamond mine. It is located in a remote Arctic tundra region, approximately 200 kilometers south of the Arctic Circle, in an area of continuous permafrost, traditionally called “ekati” by the indigenous peoples of the Northwest Territories. The diamonds at the Ekati sight are found in 45 to 62 million year old kimberlite pipes, which lie under shallow lakes.

Ekati means “fat lake” and refers to the veins of white quartz that run through the rock in that area. Those veins are said to resemble caribou fat, which was a symbol of great value to the Aboriginal people in northern Canada.

Ekati diamonds, sold under the trade name Aurias, have become a symbol of great value to the world. They are cut and polished precisely and the specifications are exact. The bar is set high. These remarkably cut diamonds are rated by the independent American Gemological Society as “Triple 0.” Aurius diamonds are a cut above – rated, you might say, perfection times three.

So the tale of ekati is a true story, about Chuck Fipke and diamonds. But there is a new Tale of Ekati. This one seeks fame and fortune in New Orleans on the Triple Crown trail, and hopes at the end to find perfection times three.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 7th, 2008 at 7:03 am and is filed under Featured Articles. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.