Gemfields profit after liability write-back

Gems miner Gemfields made its first ever profit in the year to June 2010, although it had a little help from the release of a provision. It swung from a loss of $291.1m to a profit of $1.5m as revenues from emerald sales jumped from $815,000 to $19.9m. A reduction in operating costs at the Kagem mine in Zambia helped AIM-quoted Gemfields make a gross profit but the reason behind the profit was the release of a $4.56m decommissioning liability. The majority of the previous year's loss came from writing the Kagem mine down to zero. Gemfields intends to reassess the value of these assets. Net debt was $627,000 at the end of June 2010. The average revenue per carat of rough emerald and beryl was nearly $1 higher after the July auction. Sales worth $7.5m were made in those auctions. Exploration has been re-initiated in the company's Zambian and Madagascan licence areas. Gemfields Grou.