Raises 4.2 million dollars

The London-based mining company Gemfields on Tuesday announced that it has raised 4.2 million US dollars from an auction of predominantly commercial-quality sapphire, corundum, and low-quality ruby held from 19 September to 23 September 2022. In total, 3.6 tonnes of material (18.1 million carats) were sold.The gems were mined in the northern Mozambican district of Montepuez by Montepuez Ruby Mining Limitada (MRM), which is 75 per cent owned by Gemfields and 25 per cent by Mwiriti Limitada.According to Adrian Banks, Gemfields’ Managing Director of Product & Sales, “the buoyant conditions prevailing in the coloured gemstone market made this an excellent time to sell several years of accumulated MRM commercial-quality inventory”.

added, “we thank and congratulate the government of Mozambique and our partners at Mwiriti – both of whom attended the auction – on what are very healthy results for material of this quality”.

Gemfields stressed that “the proceeds of this auction will be fully repatriated to MRM in Mozambique, with all royalties due to the government of the Republic of Mozambique being paid on the full sales prices achieved at the auction”.Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM) holds a 25-year concession on an area of 340 square kilometres in Montepuez, in Cabo Delgado province. Since 2014, over 830 million dollars have been raised from the auction of rubies and other gems from the mine.