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Zimbabwe today begins auctioning nearly one million carats of diamonds at the Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE), with anticipation high that the two-week auction will earn the country an average US$100 per carat compared to the previous best average of US$76 per carat. Mbada Diamonds, Anjin, Jinan, Diamond Mining Corporation, DZT-OZGEO, Marange Resources and Kusena submitted parcels totalling 960 000 carats.
This will be the third sale this year after the January auction grossed US$70 million, while in March US$29,2 million was realised from 400 000 carats.
The Sunday Mail has established that mining authorities have been holding high-level meetings to seek marketing alternatives that will push the average price per carat to over US$100.
The sale comes at a time Harare is seeking to reap maximum benefits from its minerals, which are central to financing the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation.
The DDE auction in the United Arab Emirates is tipped to attract a record number of buyers, as interest in diamonds from Zimbabwe continues to grow in the face of declining global output.
The DDE was chosen ahead of other international diamond auction centres such as Antwerp (Belgium), Shanghai (China), Tel Aviv (Israel) and Hong Kong which had all submitted bids to auction the precious stones.
Mines and Mining Development Permanent Secretary Professor Francis Gudyanga said: “All the companies were asked to prepare parcels for the auction in Dubai. 960 000 carats are ready to be auction and the sale will take place from 20 July to August.”
A few weeks ago, Mines and Mining Development Minister Walter Chidhakwa said the country was angling for an average price of over US$100 per carat. The Dubai auction will be the fourth public sale of Zimbabwe’s diamonds since December 2013.
Antwerp held the first auction that December, where a disappointing average price per carat of US$40 was recorded; before another auction at the same market saw the price rise to US$76 in March.
derick.khumalo
Online Reporter