Middle Orange River region

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VANCOUVER, March 20, 2013 /CNW/ - Rockwell Diamonds Inc. ("Rockwell" or
the "Company") (TSX: RDI; JSE: RDI) is pleased to announce that it has,
consequent upon the Old Order Mining Rights held by Jasper having been
converted into New Order Mining Rights,1 completed its acquisition of the Jasper Mine by settling the purchase
consideration through the issue of shares.


The agreement to acquire the Jasper Mine project, which is contiguous to
Rockwell's Saxendrift Mine, formed part of the transaction to unwind
the Company's Black Economic Empowerment ("BEE") partnership with
Africa Vanguard Resources ("AVR") (as announced on March 19, 2012):



Jasper acquisition: Rockwell's application for the New Order Mining Right at Jasper has
recently been approved, triggering the payment by the Company of R2.0
million (C$221,484) in Rockwell shares listed on the JSE Limited, to
the Jasper shareholders. A total of 533,332 shares were issued at R3.75
(C$0.41) per share, which represents the 5-day volume weighted moving
average price at the time that the agreements were signed in March
2012. The Jasper shareholders have undertaken not to trade these shares
for a period of one year.


Unwinding of AVR BEE shareholding: A new black economic empowerment partner, which shares the Company's
vision and is committed to adding value to Rockwell has been
identified. Good progress has been made in terms of securing external
funding to cover purchase consideration by the new BEE shareholder in
order to finalize the unbundling of the transaction with AVR.



The Company has outlined the way forward for this newly acquired
property. Geological studies to estimate the resources at the Jasper
Mine are well advanced and the Company is on track to release a NI
43-101 compliant technical statement before the end of May 2013.
Initial assessments of the alluvial Jasper deposit suggest that its
production profile may be similar to Saxendrift in terms of quality,
size and value. Accordingly, by processing materials mined from Jasper
at the Company's Saxendrift Mine, there is the potential to extend the
life of the Saxendrift operation with limited new investment. The
Company is also reviewing the possible construction of an in field
screen at Jasper with projected efficiency benefits for the overall
operating cost structure of the mine.


"The Middle Orange River region, which is known for its large and
high-valued gem-quality diamonds, is a key area of focus for Rockwell,
with the Company targeting a processing capacity of 500,000 m3 per month of quality gravels. The Jasper Mine project is an important
component of this strategy as it provides the potential to extend the
mine life of the contiguous Saxendrift Mine," explains James Campbell,
CEO, Rockwell Diamonds. "Jasper increases our options within the
Saxendrift Complex to grow our production profile, and deliver on our
forecast recoveries."


About Rockwell Diamonds:


Rockwell is engaged in the business of operating and developing alluvial
diamond deposits, with a goal to become a mid-tier diamond production
company. The Company has two operational mines, which it is
progressively optimizing, as well as a third mine, Saxendrift Hill
Complex, which will come into production in the first quarter of fiscal
2014. Rockwell also has two development projects and a pipeline of
earlier stage properties with future development potential. The
operations are based on high throughput processing capability and
Saxendrift, the flagship mine has among the lowest unit costs in the
industry, as a result of implementing fit for purpose technologies.


The Company is known for producing large, high quality gem stone
diamonds comprising a major portion of its diamond recoveries and has a
beneficiation joint venture that enables it to participate in the
profits on the sale of the polished diamonds.


Rockwell also evaluates merger and acquisition opportunities which have
the potential to expand its mineral resources and production profile
and would provide accretive value to the Company.


No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information
contained in this news release.


Forward Looking Statements


Except for statements of historical fact, this news release contains
certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable
securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized
by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe",
"anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that
certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Although the
Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking
statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not
guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may
differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.


Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
in forward-looking statements include uncertainties and costs related
to exploration and development activities, such as those related to
determining whether mineral resources exist on a property;
uncertainties related to expected production rates, timing of
production and cash and total costs of production and milling;
uncertainties related to the ability to obtain necessary licenses,
permits, electricity, surface rights and title for development
projects; operating and technical difficulties in connection with
mining development activities; uncertainties related to the accuracy of
our mineral resource estimates and our estimates of future production
and future cash and total costs of production and diminishing
quantities or grades of mineral resources; uncertainties related to
unexpected judicial or regulatory procedures or changes in, and the
effects of, the laws, regulations and government policies affecting our
mining operations; changes in general economic conditions, the
financial markets and the demand and market price for mineral
commodities such and diesel fuel, steel, concrete, electricity, and
other forms of energy, mining equipment, and fluctuations in exchange
rates, particularly with respect to the value of the US dollar,
Canadian dollar and South African Rand; changes in accounting policies
and methods that we use to report our financial condition, including
uncertainties associated with critical accounting assumptions and
estimates; environmental issues and liabilities associated with mining
and processing; geopolitical uncertainty and political and economic
instability in countries in which we operate; and labour strikes, work
stoppages, or other interruptions to, or difficulties in, the
employment of labour in markets in which we operate our mines, or
environmental hazards, industrial accidents or other events or
occurrences, including third party interference that interrupt
operation of our mines or development projects.


For further information on Rockwell, Investors should review Rockwell's
home jurisdiction filings that are available at



SOURCE: Rockwell Diamonds Inc.



For further information:

For further information on Rockwell and its operations in South Africa, please contact

James Campbell CEO +27 (0)83 457 3724 Stephanie Leclercq Investor Relations +27 (0)83 307 7587