Vancouver-based Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers was expecting record crowds at an equipment auction in Edmonton in late April.
The company hoped to break a record set in April 2015, said a news release in advance of the April 26-28 Edmonton auction, which was scheduled to take place after this edition went to press.
The April 2015 Edmonton auction attracted more than 14,000 bidders from more than 55 countries.
This year, Ritchie Bros. is ramping up its marketing efforts in a bid to break the record, the release said. That includes heavy targeting of bidders in the U.S. and outside of Alberta.
“The strength of the U.S. dollar has resulted in continued growth of U.S. bidders participating in our Canadian auctions,” the release quoted Ritchie vice-president Trent Vandenberghe. “The more interested buyers we can attract to our auctions, the better the results for our sellers.”
The release noted that the economic slump in Alberta has prompted many local contractors to cash in their idle assets.
“Others are simply realigning or upgrading their fleets,” the release said.
The company’s Edmonton auctions attracted record turnouts of more than 59,000 bidder registrations in 2015. This year is off to a bigger start. Ritchie’s first Edmonton auction of 2016, in February, attracted more than 13,000 bidders. That was 50 per cent more than at the February 2015 Edmonton auction.
U.S. bidder registration increased 66 percent for the February 2016 event compared with 2015.
“We help companies buy and sell equipment through all points of the economic cycle,” the release quoted Ritchie senior vice-president Brian Glenn. “Ritchie Bros. has been conducting auctions in Alberta since the early 1960s. We have long-standing relationships with local contractors. Our unreserved auctions provide them certainty in uncertain times.”
More than 7,300 items worth over C$120 million were sold at the February 2016 Edmonton auction, said an earlier release from Ritchie Bros. Out of province buyers accounted for C$69 million or 58 per cent of that volume. That included C$21 million, or 17 per cent of the total, to out-of-country buyers.
Among the items sold were two 80-ton 4x4x4 Tadano TR800XXL4 rough-terrain cranes that fetched a combined C$625,000.
“The size of this auction is partly a reflection of the current economy here in Alberta, with 2,700 more items for sale than last February,” Glenn said.
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