Ron Phillips Explains Why Black Opal Is So Expensive

Black opal ranks among the most expensive and rarest gemstones on Earth. It has a dark body tone and features a gorgeous color pattern resembling the Aurora Polaris. A single carat can cost upwards of $10,000.

It’s not a secret that black opal has a steep price tag. However, not many people understand the high valuation of these gemstones. In this post, Ron Phillips unravels the intricacies of pricing black opal.

Mining Costs

Colored gemstones don’t form clusters, making them tedious to locate. It is common for miners to come up empty-handed despite weeks of mining. Even experts struggle to pinpoint the location of opal clay with 100% accuracy from above the ground.

For this reason, these gems are extremely rare and command high prices. The difficulty in mining leads to the high per-carat value of black opal.

Rarity

Ron Phillips notes that you can only mine black opal in Lightning Ridge, a small outback town in New South Wales, Australia. 90% of the black opals available comes from this small remote region.

Limited Supply

The Australian government has put in place stringent mining regulations since miners began searching for opals in the Lightning Ridge area during the early 20th century. Without this emphasis on environmental preservation, the region would likely have long since been decimated by haphazard mining practices. Despite their necessity, such regulations contribute to higher prices by limiting the available supply.

Bottom Line

Black opal is a rare gemstone coveted by many for its exceptional beauty. Due to the difficulty of procurement, rarity, and limited supply, prices on these stones are steep and, Ron Phillips notes, with no additional supply anticipated, prices could increase further.