Gemfields Emerald Production Hits 9.9 Million Carats in Q3

(IDEX Online News) – Emerald and beryl production at Gemfields plc’s 75-percent owned Kagen mine in Zambia hit 9.9 million carats for the quarter ended March 31. This compares to 3.6 million carats in the March 31, 2014 quarter.

The company also said that the average grade increased to 355 carats per ton, compared to the 198 carats per ton in the prior year period, a 79 percent increase in grade.

An auction of predominantly lower quality rough emerald and beryl held in Lusaka, Zambia generated revenues of $14.5 million in February. The company’s next auction of traded rough emerald (goods not obtained directly from Gemfield’s own mining operations) is scheduled to take place in Jaipur, India this month alongside an auction of ruby and corundum from the Montepuez ruby deposit in Mozambique. An auction of predominantly higher quality rubies will take place in Singapore in June 2015.

Production at the 75-percent owned Montepuez Ruby Mining Limitada was approximately 1.4 million carats of ruby and corundum (versus 1.1 million carats in the quarter ended 31 March 2014). The mine saw an average grade of 18 carats per ton compared to 38 carats per ton the previous year.

Gemfields attributed the decrease to the largely alluvial and higher quality nature of the particular areas mined during the quarter.

The company said that the value of sales at Fabergé Ltd increased by 64 percent compared to the same period last year and that operating costs were flat.

“This quarter has once again delivered pleasing results for Gemfields. We have achieved considerable increases in production volumes at both the Kagem and Montepuez mining operations, underpinned by constant growth in market demand for these products as is evidenced by the ongoing successes achieved at our auctions, all of which validates our decision to expand the scale of the operations across our key sites,” said CEO Ian Harebottle.

“These results are further supported by the overwhelmingly positive response Fabergé has received from so many sources for its newly unveiled product lines and which was once again evidenced by a healthy increase in the number and value of sales orders placed.”