Emerald Auction Results

RNS Number : 7538U

Gemfields Group Limited

07 December 2021

 

Incorporated in Guernsey. Guernsey registration Number: 47656.

South African external company registration number 2009/012636/10

Share code on JSE:GML  / AIM:GEM

  ISIN: GG00BG0KTL52  |  LEI: 21380017GAVXTCYS5R31

("Gemfields" or the "Company")

Emerald Auction Results

LONDON, 7 DECEMBER 2021

Gemfields is pleased to announce the results of an emerald auction comprising a series of five sequential mini-auctions held during the period 1 November - 6 December 2021. The auction contained a selection of grades that are typically offered at Kagem Mining Ltd's ("Kagem") auctions of higher quality emeralds as well as a selection of special pieces. The auction lots were made available for in-person and private viewings by customers in Dubai and Jaipur. Following the viewings, the auctions took place via an online auction platform specifically adapted for Gemfields and which permitted customers from multiple jurisdictions to participate in a sealed-bid process.

The rough emeralds sold were extracted by Kagem (which is 75% owned by Gemfields and 25% by the Industrial Development Corporation of Zambia). The proceeds of this auction will be fully repatriated to Kagem in Zambia, with all royalties due to the Government of the Republic of Zambia being paid on the full sales prices achieved at the auction. 

Highlights - November & December 2021 Emerald Auction

· Total auction revenues of USD 37.8 million, an all-time record for Kagem auctions

· All 32 lots offered were sold (100%)

· Average price of USD 150.65 per carat, an all-time record for Kagem auctions

· 100% of the carats offered were sold

· Record calendar-year auction revenues for Kagem of USD 92.3 million

· The 39 auctions of Kagem gemstones held since July 2009 have generated USD 749.7 million in total revenues

The auction saw 58 companies placing bids and generating total revenues of USD 37.8 million with an overall average value of USD 150.65 per carat, a new record. The auction saw 100% of the offered carats sold. Gemfields' 39 auctions of emeralds and beryl mined at Kagem since July 2009 have generated USD 749.7 million in total revenues.

Chipembele, the 7,525 carat 'rhino emerald' unveiled to the world by Gemfields on 8 November 2021 was won by longstanding Kagem customer Eshed - Gemstar. Chipembele carries unique DNA nanoparticle tagging, developed by Gübelin Gem Labs, ensuring that the resulting cut and polished gems can be identified and certified as having originated from this extraordinary gemstone and therefore from the Kagem emerald mine in Zambia. Eshed - Gemstar also won an ultra-fine 935 carat emerald crystal which is expected to yield notable gems.

The results of the five most recent higher-quality Kagem auctions are summarised in the table below (and earlier results are available at www.gemfieldsgroup.com):

AUCTION RESULTS (HIGHER QUALITY)	May '19 AUCTION	Nov '19 AUCTION	Nov-Dec '20 AUCTION (5 sequential mini-auctions)	Mar-Apr '21 AUCTION (5 sequential mini-auctions)	Nov-Dec '21 AUCTION (5 sequential mini-auctions)
Dates	14-17 May 2019	18-21 Nov 2019	2 Nov - 11 Dec 2020	15 Mar - 17 Apr 2021	1 Nov - 6 Dec 2021
Location	Singapore	Singapore	Various/ Online	Various/ Online	Various/ Online
Type	Higher Quality	Higher Quality	Higher Quality	Higher Quality	Higher Quality
Carats offered	0.43 million	0.36 million	0.23 million	0.273 million	0.251 million
Carats sold	0.31 million	0.32 million	0.18 million	0.271 million	0.251 million
No. of companies placing bids	45	48	47	59	58
Average no. of bids per lot	8	9	11	18	20
No. of lots offered	35	38	28	37	32
No. of lots sold	28	33	24	36	32
Percentage of lots sold	80%	87%	86%	97%	100%
Percentage of lots sold by weight	72%	88%	80%	99%	100%
Total sales realised at auction	USD 22.4 million	USD 27.2 million	USD 10.9 million	USD 31.4 million	USD 37.8 million
Average per carat sales value	USD 71.85/carat	USD 85.26/carat	USD 59.84 / carat	USD 115.59 / carat	USD 150.65 / carat

The specific auction mix and the quality of the lots offered at each auction vary in characteristics such as size, colour and clarity on account of variations in mined production and market demand. Therefore the results of each auction are not always directly comparable.

In addition to the 32 schedules tabulated above, a mineral specimen containing approximately 100 emerald crystals set in host-rock was also offered at the auction. Known as the "Goliath" mineral specimen, it was mined at Kagem in 2010 and weighs some 33 kilograms. As a result of the level of host-rock content it is not included in the tabulation or auction results above. Goliath was not sold at the auction.

Adrian Banks, Gemfields' Managing Director of Product & Sales, commented:

"Our end-of-year emerald auction has been one of the most hotly contested auctions in Kagem's history. As a result, the auction set new records for both the highest revenue and the highest average price per carat achieved at any Kagem auction. We congratulate Eshed - Gemstar on winning Chipembele, 'the rhino emerald', a magnificent 7,525 carat emerald crystal mined at Kagem on 13 July 2021. The auction result again underscores the step-change in both market demand and in the prices bid by our clients, aided by tightened supply stemming from the one-year suspension of operations at Kagem, the world's largest emerald mine, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We look forward immensely to monitoring developments in 2022."

-ENDS-

Further information on Gemfields Group Limited can be found at:

  GEMFIELDSGROUP.COM

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ENQUIRIES

GEMFIELDS	Sean Gilbertson / David Lovett / Mark Lawrie T:  [phone]
SPONSOR (JSE)	Investec Bank Limited
SEDIBELO SALE PROCESS	Liberum Nehal Patel T: [phone]
NOMINATED ADVISER (AIM) & JOINT BROKER	finnCap Limited Christopher Raggett / Tim Redfern / Edward Whiley T: [phone]
JOINT BROKER	Liberum Scott Mathieson / Kane Collings T: [phone]
FINANCIAL PR/ IR	Camarco Gordon Poole / Nick Hennis T: [phone]

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON GEMFIELDS

Gemfields is a world-leading supplier of responsibly sourced coloured gemstones. Gemfields is the operator and 75% owner of both the Kagem emerald mine in Zambia (believed to be the world's single largest producing emerald mine) and the Montepuez ruby mine in Mozambique (one of the most significant recently discovered ruby deposits in the world). In addition, Gemfields also holds controlling interests in various other gemstone mining and prospecting licenses in Zambia, Mozambique, Ethiopia and Madagascar.

Gemfields' outright ownership of Fabergé - an iconic and prestigious brand of exceptional heritage - enables Gemfields to optimise positioning, perception and consumer awareness of coloured gemstones, advancing the wider group's "mine and market" vision.

Gemfields has developed a proprietary grading system and a pioneering auction and trading platform to provide a consistent supply of coloured gemstones to downstream markets, a key component of Gemfields' business model and has played an important role in the growth of the global coloured gemstone sector.

GEMFIELDS

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KAGEM MINING LINKEDIN

MONTEPUEZ RUBY MINING LINKEDIN

 

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