adminLUSAKA – Zambia’s biggest emerald producer raised 36.5 million United States dollars from its auction of higher-quality emeralds held in Lusaka, the country’s capital, the company said yesterday.Kagem Mine Limited, which is 75 percent owned by London-listed Gemfields Plc, with the Zambian government owning the remaining 25 percent, conducted a local auction of higher-quality emeralds from Friday last week to Tuesday this week.
According to a statement, this is a record earning for any Gemfields auction. The auction attracted 35 buyers from countries including the United States of America, Hong Kong, Germany and India as well as two local firms.
According to the statement, the average price was 59.31 dollars per carat, a 10 percent increase on previous auction record. About 168 kilogram or 840,000 carats of the green stones were on sale.
This is the fourth local auction held in Lusaka following the government’s decision to ban foreign sales of the green precious stones last year, in a move to protect the country from unscrupulous buyers and keep the gem wealth in the country.
Last year, the company held three local auctions raising 15.2 million dollars, 31.5 million dollars and 16.4 million dollars respectively. The company has since July 2009 held 15 auctions for its Zambian mine generating 260 million dollars in total revenues. – Xinhua
Sidumisile Mabena