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Q&A: Al Cook on the Lab-Grown ‘Bubble,’ Dwindling Diamond Supply The De Beers Group CEO also discussed tariffs, Desert Diamonds, and the pending sale of De Beers in an interview with Michelle Graff.
SourcingFeb 15, 2018
Alrosa’s Diamond Production Up 6% in 2017
The Russian mining company produced 39.6 million carats of diamonds last year, up from 37.4 million in 2016.
Alrosa recovered this 98.63-carat rough diamond from the Jubilee pipe in December 2017. Development in the richest part of the kimberlite pipe was one of the reasons Alrosa gave for its 6 percent increase in diamond production last year.
Moscow--Production rose 6 percent year-over-year in 2017 for Alrosa, the Moscow-based mining company reported.
Alrosa mined 39.6 million carats of diamonds, up from 37.4 million in 2016 and in line with the company’s target for the year, 39.2 million.
Key drivers for production growth were higher output at the Udachny underground mine, increased grade at the Arkhangelskaya and Karpinskogo-1 pipes operated by Severalmaz, higher production at the Botuobinskaya pipe and development of the richest part of the Jubilee pipe.
Jubilee is the pipe known for producing large white diamonds, including a 98.63-carat rough mined in December and diamonds of 82.82, 163.11 and 108.34 carats recovered in October. Alrosa said Jubilee produced more than 20 rough diamonds weighing more than 50 carats last year.
The increased production at these pipes was enough to offset the temporary shutdown of Mir underground following a fatal accident at the mine in August. Eight workers were killed when the mine flooded and Alrosa fired two top executives and disciplined 22 more after a government investigation concluded that the accident was due in part to Alrosa’s design for the mine.
Preliminary sales results for 2017 show that Alrosa sold 41.2 million carats of diamonds in 2017, up slightly from the 40 million sold last year.
Rough diamond sales totaled $4.2 billion while polished diamond sales were $96.9 million and included the sale of four of the five diamonds in the “Dynasty” collectionn.
Alrosa also recently released its results for January 2018.
RELATED CONTENT: De Beers Reports First Sales Results for 2018The company sold $504.5 million in rough and polished diamonds in the first month of the year, with rough diamond sales accounting for $499 million of that and polished diamond sales totaling $5.5 million.
Alrosa Deputy CEO Yury Okoemov said the “good” demand for diamonds early this year is due in part to positive sales trends in major markets in 2017, including the United States, that ended with a solid holiday season.
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