PJSC Alrosa said Dec. 16 that its supervisory board approved the strategy for the development of the company's cutting and polishing complex for 2020 to 2022, as well as the integration plan of the Smolensk, Russia-based Kristall Production Corp. into the group.

Currently, Alrosa includes several diamond cutting companies, including Diamonds of Alrosa branches in Moscow and Barnaul, and the Kristall diamond factory, which the company purchased from the state in October.

The strategy is expected to help improve the company's operational efficiency for its consolidated diamond cutting sector, positively affecting the financial results of the business segment. It involves the redistribution of the mix of rough diamonds for cutting to maximize production efficiency.

During the early stages of the integration, cutting of colorless diamonds weighing from 1 carat to 10 carats will be moved to Smolensk to cut costs, while small-size diamonds will be cut in Barnaul and Smolensk. The total cutting volume is set to exceed 200,000 carats of rough diamonds.

Meanwhile, the company said that pulling together diamonds that currently go to Kristall and to Diamonds of Alrosa will allow the formation of a more representative and stable rough diamond mix, creating synergy.