In what is described as an “highly unusual bid”, Russian diamond giant Alrosa has bought “stockpiles of diamonds” from the Russian government “to replenish dwindling inventory, ahead of its current contract sale,” IDEX Online reports.
The diamonds were bought during a special auction held last week by Gokhran, the state repository of precious gems and metals. According to the report, Alrosa bought 70% of the lots offered.
According to Alrosa, even wirth the Gokhran diamonds, it will not be enough to fully meet demand: “”Even with this step we will be able to satisfy only some of the demand at the upcoming session,” Evgeny Agureev, Alrosa’s deputy CEO, said and added: “The government takes a very responsible approach to selling diamonds from Gokhran and only offers them against real demand. These diamonds are what the market needs right now, and they will soon move on to the cutting and polishing stage, which we believe will somewhat contribute to balance the market.”
