DiamondBuzz
Russian government could buy rougher from Alrosa
The Russian government could buy more rough diamonds from the state-run miner Alrosa, as it faces ongoing G7 sanctions and weak global demand.The Finance Ministry says it will assess the situation after seeing second quarter results.Alrosa last week reported a 77 per cent slump in profits for 2024 (down to $223m) and has said it could suspend some less profitable activities and lay off some of its 35,000 workers.
In December 2024, ALROSA, Russia’s leading diamond mining company, reached an agreement to sell a batch of rough diamonds to the Gokhran of Russia, the state repository for precious metals and gemstones. This batch included a notable 390-carat diamond, the largest discovered in Russia over the past decade, unearthed from the Ebelyakh deposit in Yakutia in September 2023.
This transaction occurred in the context of ongoing international sanctions and a global downturn in diamond demand, which have impacted ALROSA’s traditional sales channels. The Gokhran’s purchase provided financial support to ALROSA during these challenging times.
The Russian government has indicated plans to continue such purchases, with the federal budget allocating up to 154.5 billion rubles (approximately $1.55 billion) for acquiring precious metals and gemstones for the Gokhran between 2025 and 2027. Alrosa has previously offloaded excess inventory to Gokhran, the Russian State Precious Metals and Gemstones Repository in times of weak demand.
DiamondBuzz
CVD Synthetic Fashioned To Imitate A Rough Natural Diamond
The Near-Colorless Stone Is Believed To Be The First Time Creators Of A Synthetic Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) Diamond Have Shaped It To Resemble A Rough Diamond
The 6.87-carat near-colorless CVD diamond was shaped to resemble a natural rough octahedral crystal but showed distinct synthetic features under microscopic and spectroscopic analysis.GIA’s tests confirmed the stone’s synthetic origin, noting polishing marks, facet junction roughness, and luminescence patterns inconsistent with natural diamonds.
No evidence currently suggests widespread substitution of synthetics for rough natural diamonds, but existing detection tools could be adapted if such cases increase.
The near-colorless stone is believed to be the first time creators of a synthetic chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond have shaped it to resemble a rough diamond, according to an article in the spring issue of the institute’s Gems & Gemology quarterly journal.
Upon investigation with the use of raman spectroscopy, the results confirmed that the material was a diamond, with its near-octahedral shape similar to that of a natural rough crystal. Further analysis showed that it was not a true octahedron, as only one set of opposing faces was parallel. Microscopic observation under differential interference contrast revealed extremely flat faces marked mainly by parallel polishing lines, unlike the growth steps and trigons typically seen on natural octahedral faces. The facet junctions were extremely rough, possibly due to measures taken to improve the color, after which the main faces appear to have been repolished, the institute explained.
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