Experts think that merger of Alrosa and Kristall is inevitable

A merger of Alrosa and the largest domestic enterprise for the production of diamonds - Kristall – is a matter of time, some experts, close to the diamond and diamond-cutting industry in Russia, believe, the Izvestia writes.

Russia, represented by the state-owned company Alrosa, is the leader in the sale of diamonds abroad, but, according to statistics, only 13% of the mined remains in the country. According to the curator of the industry, the Deputy Prime Minister, Yuri Trutnev, "we must process the natural wealth of our country, leaving a high added value in the territory of Russia". We are talking about the Yakut diamonds that Alrosa mines and the exports of which grows: in the first six months of 2014, according to the Finance Ministry, it increased by 8.7% to $2.5 billion.