ALROSA held a total of 32 international auctions for rough diamonds of special sizes (over 10.8 carats) in 2018 for which the total revenue garnered in the year amounted to US$463 million.

The Company has been traditionally holding auctions in six countries – Russia, Belgium, Israel, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.

In 2018, the highest number of auctions were held in Moscow (11). Another four were held in Vladivostok in Russia. 

“For the first time in many years, the company held two auctions at its sales office in New York, which resumed operations last year,” ALROSA said enumerating the sites for the other auctions. “Another six auctions took place in Ramat Gan (Israel), three in Hong Kong (China), four in Dubai (United Arab Emirates) and two in Antwerp (Belgium).”

In the year 2019, ALROSA plans to hold 37 international auctions, increasing the number of auctions in Antwerp, New York and Dubai. “There will be still 11 auctions in Moscow and 4 in Vladivostok,” the Company announced. “According to the approved schedule, another 18 auctions will be held in the world’s largest diamond trading centers: four of them in Antwerp; five in Dubai, six in Ramat Gan, and three in Hong Kong. Four auctions are scheduled for this year in New York.”

Evgeny Agureev, Member of the Management Board, and Director of the United Sales Organisation at ALROSA, said: “International auctions are an integral part of our trading activity, since large rough diamonds in accordance with Russian law should be sold only in this way. Large diamonds are usually in good demand in the market, so each of our auctions collect up to 100 participants. In general, we are pleased with the results of 2018, and we found opportunity to increase the number of auctions in 2019 to 37 against the background of stable demand. In 2018, auction activity at our promising Far Eastern site, which today is not inferior to global diamond trading centers, went well. One of the notable events of the past year was the resumption of our sales office in New York, where we held two auctions and, having received positive feedback, decided to increase the number of auctions in the United States this year.”