(IDEX Online) - Canadian miner Mountain Province Diamonds has held its first traditional sale February.Prices per carat were in line those achieved by comparable stones at the equivalent sale in 2019, the company said.Mountain Province operates the Gahcho Kue mine (pictured) in Canada's Northwest Territories, in a joint venture with De Beers Canada Inc.The sale, in Antwerp on Saturday, realized a total of $8.9m from 210,661 carats at an average value of $42 per carat, just one per cent down on February 2019. It did not include any high-value or fancy stones.The miner reported Q2 losses of $21.8m as the pandemic closed markets, but it negotiated a lifeline with Irish billionaire Dermot Desmond, whose Bahamas-registered company Dunebridge, agreed to buy $50m of rough.Stuart Brown, president and CEO of Mountain Province, speaking after last week's sale, said: "We are pleased to have finally resumed our traditional sales channels as the markets around the globe continue to gradually open for business. "The results of the first small sale, post the COVID-19 pandemic are an encouraging start considering that the market has been at a standstill for nearly six months. The results of the sale were a positive sign as the markets for rough and polished diamonds start to return."The company's next sale event is scheduled to close on 31 October.