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Gemfields Sells 36-Carat Rough Ruby
The gemstone is the third most valuable ruby to come out of the Montepuez mine, Gemfields said.
Gemfields’ June mixed-quality rough ruby auction achieved $31.7 million. The sale took place June 2-13 in Bangkok.
London—Gemfields announced that its latest mixed-quality rough ruby auction totaled $31.7 million and included the sale of one of the largest rubies ever recovered from the Montepuez mine in Mozambique.
The auction, composed of six mini auctions, was 87 percent sold by lot and 69 percent sold by weight with an average sale price of $461.48 per carat.
The miner noted that a mini auction held in April, which featured predominantly small-sized gemstones that normally would have been included in the June auction, and some higher-weight, lower-quality lots that did not sell skewed the per-carat average price for the June auction.
Montepuez Ruby Mining Limitada (MRM), which is 75 percent owned by Gemfields and 25 percent by Mozambican partner Mwiriti Limitada, mined the gemstones.
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The auction, composed of six mini auctions, was 87 percent sold by lot and 69 percent sold by weight with an average sale price of $461.48 per carat.
The miner noted that a mini auction held in April, which featured predominantly small-sized gemstones that normally would have been included in the June auction, and some higher-weight, lower-quality lots that did not sell skewed the per-carat average price for the June auction.
Montepuez Ruby Mining Limitada (MRM), which is 75 percent owned by Gemfields and 25 percent by Mozambican partner Mwiriti Limitada, mined the gemstones.
The sale also included rubies from a newer area of Montepuez, including a 36-carat ruby, which achieved a “highly pleasing” sale price, said Adrian Banks, Gemfields’ managing director of product and sales.
Gemfields did not reveal the stone’s sale price or who bought it, but it did note that it is the third-largest ruby in the mine’s history.
“While this was our smallest mixed-quality ruby offering by weight to date, and there is clearly ongoing instability in the market stemming from, [among other things], ongoing geopolitical turbulence, China’s economic difficulties and considerable tariff uncertainty, today’s auction result demonstrated the resilience of rubies in turbulent times,” Banks said.
“Demand and pricing for fine-quality rubies remain strong. Notably, the secondary-type rubies recently recovered from a newer section of the mine, exhibiting different characteristics, were generally well received by auction customers.”
He continued, “This is a particularly promising development as Montepuez Ruby Mining advances towards the completion of Processing Plant 2 (PP2), enhancing its ability to deliver a consistent and diversified supply of Mozambican rubies to meet the evolving demands of the market.”
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