Russia's State Repository for Precious Metals and Jewels plans to sell silver worth about six billion rubles ($201.5 million) and diamonds worth 5.4 billion rubles ($181.3 million) in 2012, a source in the Finance Ministry told Prime news agency.
"We will sell silver and some palladium [in 2012]. We plan to sell diamonds worth over five billion rubles at an auction," the source said late on Monday.
"If we get the planned volume of funds during the first auction on March 20 this year, there will be no other auctions [in 2012] but I think this is nonsense. If there is demand and diamonds are being purchased at a good price, why should we wait? It will be time to sell them," he added.
The repository also plans to buy up to three tons of gold for five billion rubles and diamonds from the country's state-owned diamond monopoly Alrosa for four billion rubles this year to replenish the reserves.
Russia's 2012-2014 budget stipulates state sales of precious metals and jewels worth 11.43 billion rubles and purchases at 9.95 billion rubles in 2012.
The budget will receive 10.97 billion rubles in 2013 and 11.95 billion rubles in 2014 from sales, while the government will spend 9.45 billion rubles each in 2013 and 2014 for purchases.
In 2011, the repository sold 986 diamonds with a total mass of 20,000 carats for nearly $58 million at a sole auction. Palladium export amounted to about 24 tons last year compared with 26 tons in 2010.
