The largest two diamond producers, De Beers and Alrosa, account for roughly half of the primary supply in terms of volume. In 2023, they contributed 25% and 27%, respectively, of the approximately 130 million carats (Mct) volume globally.
In terms of value, De Beers Group holds a larger share at 33%, compared to Alrosa’s 25%, attributable to its greater relative production of larger-carat and higher-quality diamonds. The remaining share of supply is fragmented across several smaller producers and artisanal mines.
Across this industry landscape, annual supply volume has fallen since 2006, when production peaked around 160Mct. Production exceeded 150Mct again in 2017, but fell to 129 Mct in 2023. Annual global production is anticipated to fall to between 110 Mct to 120 Mct by 2033, as future production increases are unlikely to offset the decreasing volumes from mines reaching the end of their productive life.
Catoca’s Luele project in Angola, opened 2023 and forecasted to yield around 628 Mct over 60 years, is the only major new mine entering into commercial production this decade.
The supply of diamonds takes place on a global basis, with the provenance becoming more important. Immediately following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US banned imports of all sizes of diamonds that came directly from Russia.
In 2024, the G7 countries are implementing new sanctions in phases, by size of diamond, from January through September. The sanctions are expected to cover all Russian diamonds and diamond jewelry, both directly and indirectly imported, of greater than 0.5 carats.
In addition, global brands also self-imposed their own bans on both the direct and indirect supply of all sizes of Russian diamonds. These actions banning direct and indirect supply are expected to have a greater impact than the initial direct bans.
