A couple of weeks ago an article on the Tanzanite mining company in
Tanzania released a press blurb telling about operations by the new
licensee. The article appeared in National Jeweler and, since that
magazine circulates primarily amongst traditional jewelry venues I
thought it might be of interest to those of you who don’t get it.
Essentially the article stated that the Company had enjoyed
profitability during its’ first year of operation and that the
future holds great promise because of the establishment of greatly
increased reserves through core drilling. They went on to say that
the tenor of the ore was on the order of forty five carats per ton.
The most interesting aspect of the article was that the company has
adopted a de Beers method of marketing wherein all the product is
meted out to sight holders! The obvious implication is that prices
will not be controlled so much by supply and demand as by price
controls and marketing ploys. It will be very interesting to see how
the price of Tanzanite may yield to controlled marketing.
Ron Mills, Mills Gem Co. Los Osos, Ca.