Dmitry Fedorov: I want our jewelry to be displayed at a museum in the future

Dmitry Fedorov is the founder of the eponymous jewelry house. His main focus is the creation of Orthodox-inspired premium luxury jewelry of high artistic merit. He told Rough&Polished about his journey in the jewelry industry, about choosing the ‘Orthodox...

28 october 2024

Responsible business practices ‘no longer optional’, says WDC President Feriel Zerouki

The president of the World Diamond Council takes time out of her busy schedule to tell Rough&Polished readers about the critical work of the WDC. Zerouki, the first female present of the body, which includes all the important industry organizations among...

14 october 2024

James Campbell: Botswana Diamonds optimistic as it enters uncharted territory of using AI for mineral exploration

London-listed Botswana Diamonds has expressed optimism about the company’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) to scan the exploration database in Botswana to look for new mineralised deposits. Company managing director James Campbell told Rough...

07 october 2024

Artur Salyakayev: For me, happiness is freedom to make my ideas happen and create valuable products

Artur Salyakayev is an art entrepreneur, founder of the International Jewelry Academy (IJA) and the INCRUA jewelry company. He has initiated and developed successful projects in jewelry industry and services sector. He is also a leading expert...

30 september 2024

Paul Zimnisky: China key for sustained recovery in demand for natural diamonds, prices

The curtailing of upstream and midstream natural diamond production in the past months is starting to have an effect on prices, according to the New-York-based independent diamond and jewellery analyst and consultant, Paul Zimnisky. He told Rough & Polished’s...

23 september 2024

De Beers eyes highly designed synthetic diamonds for industrial, technological uses

11 october 2024

De Beers will shift its focus from the production of lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) for the jewellery market to the development of highly designed synthetic diamonds for industrial and technological uses, including supercomputer components and space exploration equipment.

“The strategy is both ambitious and transformative, positioning us to lead the recovery of the diamond industry, fully integrating our operations from upstream to downstream,” Mining Weekly quoted De Beers group managed operations chief executive Moses Madondo as saying at the Joburg Indaba, in Johannesburg.

He also stated that the price of natural diamonds and LGDs would experience a rapid bifurcation as the availability of natural diamonds decreases in the years ahead.

Madondo said that the average price of a 2-carat natural diamond has increased by 1% annually in recent years.

Conversely, the average retail price of a 2-carat LGD has decreased by 25% annually during the same period, with the wholesale LGD price plummeting by as much as 36%.

“I should also debunk the myth that the difference between LGDs and natural diamonds cannot be told. It definitely can be told,” he added, noting that De Beers has had synthetic diamond detection technology available for decades.

Madondo stated that the diamond verification tool built by De Beers was incredibly exact and trustworthy, with a false positive rate of 0%.

“This means there has never been a diamond that was not natural that has not been picked up by that machine,” he said.

Madondo revealed that a consumer-friendly version of this device was being developed and would go to market soon.

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief, Rough&Polished