Moscow – Alrosa reported a 13 percent increase in revenue from rough diamond sales in the first half of the year in a “positive” market where it said rough prices rose about 6 percent.
In reporting preliminary first half and second quarter sales results Monday, the Russian diamond miner said it sold 21.1 million carats of diamonds through the first six months of the year, with revenue from rough sales reaching $2.7 billion.
The company called the overall performance of the diamond market “positive,” noting the 6 percent rise in rough prices.
Preliminary sales results for the second quarter show that Alrosa sold a total of 8.4 million carats of diamonds. Of that, 6.1 million carats, or about 73 percent, were gem-quality diamonds that went for an average of $200 per carat.
The remaining 27 percent (2.3 million) carats were industrial diamonds that sold for an average price of $11 per carat.
Production for Alrosa, however, dropped 7 percent year-over-year in the first half of 2014 due to planned maintenance at processing plants at its Aikhal and Udachny divisions.
