So we've all probably seen the flaming maple leaf ad by now, ruthenium plated. I hadn't really thought of ruthenium in a precious metal sense before so I did a little digging and what I found was very interesting.
First, in the last 10 years it's been as expensive as $900USD/oz but is only $56USD/oz now. It's 3 times rarer than gold or platinum and has similarly useful properties to other platinum group metals (as a catalyst or low reactivity plating etc. with future use driven by nano tech) and is used in those capacities and that many of the significant sources are in the platinum deposits in Russia and Africa that are most unstable supply wise.
You can find bullion bars but it's something like 6 times the spot price and they don't offer buy backs.
However, I've found a place that offers .995 pure sponge in sealed plastic containers with purity, assay info and unique serial number that come from Heraeus Precious Metals Corporation (they are the refiner not the supplier). They do offer buy backs without any additional assay fees as long as the seals on the containers are still affixed and if you order enough the premium is only around $12-15usd an ounce.
The only catch is that the jars are 50oz each (recently worth close to $50k but now closer to $3200) and the premium is dependant on how many jars you buy (as well as defraying shipping costs from the states).
At the moment it's only a vague thought bubble at the moment and this is as much to kick off a discussion on ruthenium as trying to actually arrange a group buy, but what do you guys think, specifically or generally?
For my part if they were 10oz jars instead of 50 I would have put in an order already since this stuff is about as bottomed as something as useful and rare as this metal can be. In many applications I think it will start to replace other more expensive platinum group metals so I don't see any reason for it not to be at rhodium or palladium levels one day soon as they get harder and harder to find.
First, in the last 10 years it's been as expensive as $900USD/oz but is only $56USD/oz now. It's 3 times rarer than gold or platinum and has similarly useful properties to other platinum group metals (as a catalyst or low reactivity plating etc. with future use driven by nano tech) and is used in those capacities and that many of the significant sources are in the platinum deposits in Russia and Africa that are most unstable supply wise.
You can find bullion bars but it's something like 6 times the spot price and they don't offer buy backs.
However, I've found a place that offers .995 pure sponge in sealed plastic containers with purity, assay info and unique serial number that come from Heraeus Precious Metals Corporation (they are the refiner not the supplier). They do offer buy backs without any additional assay fees as long as the seals on the containers are still affixed and if you order enough the premium is only around $12-15usd an ounce.
The only catch is that the jars are 50oz each (recently worth close to $50k but now closer to $3200) and the premium is dependant on how many jars you buy (as well as defraying shipping costs from the states).
At the moment it's only a vague thought bubble at the moment and this is as much to kick off a discussion on ruthenium as trying to actually arrange a group buy, but what do you guys think, specifically or generally?
For my part if they were 10oz jars instead of 50 I would have put in an order already since this stuff is about as bottomed as something as useful and rare as this metal can be. In many applications I think it will start to replace other more expensive platinum group metals so I don't see any reason for it not to be at rhodium or palladium levels one day soon as they get harder and harder to find.
