Gemfields, a company listed on the London Stock Exchange and a world leader in the mining and marketing of colored gemstones, announced total revenues of 2.3 million dollars from an auction held this September. The event involved the sale of commercial quality rubies, sapphires and corundum extracted from the Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM) mine, located in the province of Cabo Delgado, in northern Mozambique.
The auction, which took place between September 2 and 4, offered 5.7 million carats in ten lots, all of which were sold in full. The average price achieved was 0.41 dollars per carat, highlighting the robust demand for the materials sold, as reported by Gemfields in a press release.
Adrian Banks, Executive Director of Product and Sales at Gemfields, expressed his gratitude to the auction participants and highlighted the success of the event, even though it was a short three-day auction. “Most of the offer consisted of corundum and sapphire, which are considered by-products of MRM. Despite this, the auction attracted a strong turnout and robust demand,” commented Banks.
The executive emphasized that the significant volume of raw product sold at lower prices will benefit the factories at the cutting centers in Chanthaburi, Thailand, and Jaipur, India. He also thanked the Mozambican government and Mwiriti’s partners for the satisfactory results achieved. All proceeds from the auction will be repatriated to Mozambique, with royalties owed to the government being paid in full.
Gemfields recently revealed that, since the start of operations in 2012, ruby mining in the MRM has generated revenues of one billion dollars (63.2 billion meticais). By 2023, the company had earned a total revenue of 151.3 million dollars (9.5 billion meticais) from ruby mining alone. As well as being a benchmark in ruby mining, Gemfields owns 75% of the Kagem emerald mine in Zambia and has bulk sampling licenses in Ethiopia.
With a strong presence in the global market, Gemfields continues to consolidate its position as a leader in the responsible mining and marketing of precious stones, making a significant contribution to the local economies where it operates.
