ALROSA reported over $20 million in revenue was generated by auctions of special-size rough diamonds in Belgium and Israel this month. “Specials” are larger rough diamonds weighing over 10.8 carats apiece. These crystals are offered for sale one by one, as opposed to smaller rough which is traditionally packaged and sold in parcels.
In Belgium, 133 diamonds totaling 2,173 carats were sold, with overall revenue totaling $7.4 million. The Israel auction brought in an impressive $13.3 million, after sales of 100 diamonds with a combined weight of 1,860 carats. The special-size rough diamonds were sold to clients from Belgium, India, Israel and United Arab Emirates.
Evgeny Agureev, Deputy CEO of ALROSA noted:
The auctions’ results confirm the demand for high quality rough diamonds. We saw this specifically at the Israeli auction, where the total proceeds significantly exceeded the reserve price. We also continue to monitor the market’s needs and focus on meeting the real demand from our customers.
New digital ground
Earlier this year ALROSA broke new digital ground in rough auctions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: With the health of employees and customers in mind, they converted to a series of digital tenders, starting with special-sizes, followed by over 800 rough diamonds 5.00 to 10.00 carats in weight.
Alrosa provided online imagery and data to customers, including 3D models of each special generated from scans, mapping the crystal’s external shape and internal inclusions. You can read more details about this year’s digital and hybrid tenders in our prior GemBlog post: Rough diamond sales go digital
In May, ALROSA began returning to their usual auction format by organizing events in its offices in Belgium and Israel.
