Results - Jaipur Emerald Auction

Gemfields plc

("Gemfields" or "the Company")

Results - Jaipur Emerald Auction

23 May 2016

Gemfields plc (AIM: GEM) is pleased to announce the results of its auction of predominantly lower quality rough emerald extracted by Kagem Mining Ltd (which is 75% owned by Gemfields and 25% by the Government of the Republic of Zambia) in Zambia.

The auction was held in Jaipur, India, from 17 - 20 May 2016. All of the proceeds of this auction will be fully repatriated to Kagem Mining Ltd in Zambia, and all of the royalties due to the Government of the Republic of Zambia will be paid on the full sales prices achieved at the auction.

Highlights

·     Auction revenues of USD 14.3 million;

·     New record of USD 5.15 per carat for lower quality auctions;

·     Of the 3.67 million carats offered for sale, 2.78 million carats were sold (76%); and

·     22 Kagem auctions held since July 2009 have generated USD 426 million in total revenues.

A total of 26 companies placed bids in Gemfields' fourth auction of Kagem production in the current financial year.

The auction saw 3.67 million carats of lower quality emerald extracted from Kagem placed on offer, with 14 of the 18 lots offered being sold, generating auction revenues of USD 14.3 million.

No beryl was placed on offer at this, or the previous Lower Quality Emerald auction, after having last been sold out of auction and with similar direct sales now having been recommenced with a considerable degree of success. While there was good demand for most of the lots placed on offer, a few of the lots in which there was a slightly higher degree of uncertainty with respect to final recovery from rough to finished goods did not achieve the pre-set Minimum Reserve Price and were thus held back. The Company, however, believes that these goods offer considerable opportunity to further build demand in other new areas and is confident in the quality and longer term value of these lots and is supported by evidence of the US market continuing to come back on stream.  The auction realised an overall average value of USD 5.15 per carat, a new record for lower quality auctions.

The Company's 22 auctions of emeralds and beryl mined at Kagem since July 2009 have generated USD 426 million in total revenues.

The results of the five most recent lower quality Kagem auctions are summarised in the table below. Additional historic information regarding lower quality auctions can be found in the 'Further Information' section of this announcement:

The specific auction mix and the exact 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 at any given time. Each auction therefore contains a degree of variation in the overall quality composition, which is typically reflected in the average per carat sales value and means that the results of each auction are not always directly comparable.

Next Auction

Gemfields' next auction is expected to take place in June 2016 in Singapore, and will be comprised predominantly of mixed quality rough ruby from the Montepuez ruby deposit in Mozambique.

Ian Harebottle, CEO of Gemfields, commented:

"Jaipur has delivered another solid auction result, including a new record price per carat for our lower quality emerald auctions. The results from this auction mean that the Kagem mine has exceeded USD 100 million of declared revenues for the current financial year, and while we are confident that these numbers will be well surpassed in the years to come, we remain grateful for the part that each of our loyal staff members have played in ensuring that Kagem is the first mine to reach anywhere near this milestone in the history of the Zambian gemstone sector.

Kagem is a partnership between the Zambian Government and Gemfields, and we would like to thank the Government for their vision and support in building and internationalising the Zambian emerald industry. Kagem would not have reached the USD 100 million milestone without their belief in promoting a transparent and globally-competitive gemstone sector".

ENQUIRIES:

Notes to Editors:

Gemfields plc is the world's leading supplier of responsibly sourced coloured gemstones and is quoted on the AIM division of the London Stock Exchange (ticker: GEM) where it is a constituent of the AIM50 index.

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 a 50% interest in the Kariba amethyst mine in Zambia, as well as controlling interests in various other gemstone mining and prospecting licenses in Zambia, Mozambique, Colombia, Ethiopia, Madagascar and Sri Lanka.

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 quality coloured gemstones to the global downstream markets. This is a key component of the Company's business model which the Directors believe has played an important role in the appropriate distribution and associated resurgence of the global coloured gemstone sector.

www.gemfields.co.uk

Further Information:

The results of earlier lower quality Kagem auctions are summarised below: