Tobia
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2025
- Messages
- 1
Hi everyone,
I’m an Economics student currently writing my master’s thesis on the impact of synthetic diamonds on the diamond industry. My goal is to compare both industries and provide a more detailed cost breakdown than what is typically offered in consulting firm reports. Rather than simply stating that synthetic diamonds have 30%-50% lower production costs, I aim to explain why, using empirical data.
I have already searched Google Scholar, JSTOR, Research Rabbit, http://academia.edu, and similar platforms. So far, the most relevant data I’ve found is in the following four papers:
V. Zhdanov, P. Smirnov, L. Andrzejewski, J. Bondareva, S. Evlashin (2022) – Comparative analysis of labor input required to produce one carat using different synthesis and mining methods, published in Heliyon. DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11519V.
Zhdanov, M. Sokolova, P. Smirnov, L. Andrzejewski, J. Bondareva, S. Evlashin (2021) – Comparative analysis of energy and water consumption: Mined vs. synthetic diamonds, published in Energies. DOI: 10.3390/en14217062.
Vladislav Zhdanov, Lukasz Andrzejewski, Julia Bondareva, Stanislav Evlashin – Comparative analysis of CapEx in diamond mining vs. diamond growing, based on open data sources and experimental results.
Olof Löf – Resource rents in the diamond industry (2014–2019): Rents, issues, methods, and data availability.
Unfortunately, I haven’t found much beyond these sources.At the moment, I’m trying to estimate CapEx per carat (CapEx/crt) in a more comprehensive way than Zhdanov, including not just the upstream stage but also the midstream and downstream stages (hence the polishing and cutting cost).
MY QUESTIONS
Additional Parameters for Comparison: Are there any other indices/metrics I could use to enhance the comparison between the two industries?
Further Research Sources: Do you know of any papers or studies that provide a deeper insight into CapEx/crt, particularly with midstream costs included?
Synthetic Diamond Production Costs: Estimating production costs per carat for synthetic diamonds has been particularly challenging. Publicly traded companies focused on lab-grown diamonds do not disclose their production volume, making it difficult to calculate per-carat costs.
Cutting & Polishing Costs: I also want to estimate the cutting and polishing costs per carat for natural diamonds, allowing me to reconstruct the full cost structure and compare it with lab-grown diamonds.
Overall, finding reliable data has been more difficult than expected, and I would greatly appreciate any advice, references, or insights. Thanks in advance for any help!
I’m an Economics student currently writing my master’s thesis on the impact of synthetic diamonds on the diamond industry. My goal is to compare both industries and provide a more detailed cost breakdown than what is typically offered in consulting firm reports. Rather than simply stating that synthetic diamonds have 30%-50% lower production costs, I aim to explain why, using empirical data.
I have already searched Google Scholar, JSTOR, Research Rabbit, http://academia.edu, and similar platforms. So far, the most relevant data I’ve found is in the following four papers:
V. Zhdanov, P. Smirnov, L. Andrzejewski, J. Bondareva, S. Evlashin (2022) – Comparative analysis of labor input required to produce one carat using different synthesis and mining methods, published in Heliyon. DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11519V.
Zhdanov, M. Sokolova, P. Smirnov, L. Andrzejewski, J. Bondareva, S. Evlashin (2021) – Comparative analysis of energy and water consumption: Mined vs. synthetic diamonds, published in Energies. DOI: 10.3390/en14217062.
Vladislav Zhdanov, Lukasz Andrzejewski, Julia Bondareva, Stanislav Evlashin – Comparative analysis of CapEx in diamond mining vs. diamond growing, based on open data sources and experimental results.
Olof Löf – Resource rents in the diamond industry (2014–2019): Rents, issues, methods, and data availability.
Unfortunately, I haven’t found much beyond these sources.At the moment, I’m trying to estimate CapEx per carat (CapEx/crt) in a more comprehensive way than Zhdanov, including not just the upstream stage but also the midstream and downstream stages (hence the polishing and cutting cost).
MY QUESTIONS
Additional Parameters for Comparison: Are there any other indices/metrics I could use to enhance the comparison between the two industries?
Further Research Sources: Do you know of any papers or studies that provide a deeper insight into CapEx/crt, particularly with midstream costs included?
Synthetic Diamond Production Costs: Estimating production costs per carat for synthetic diamonds has been particularly challenging. Publicly traded companies focused on lab-grown diamonds do not disclose their production volume, making it difficult to calculate per-carat costs.
Cutting & Polishing Costs: I also want to estimate the cutting and polishing costs per carat for natural diamonds, allowing me to reconstruct the full cost structure and compare it with lab-grown diamonds.
Overall, finding reliable data has been more difficult than expected, and I would greatly appreciate any advice, references, or insights. Thanks in advance for any help!
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