In its first ever, five-day auction in September, Ritchie Bros. sold a staggering 10,700 equipment items for more than $76 million at its site in Edmonton, AB.

More than 14,350 people from 49 countries registered to bid in the event, including 11,600+ online bidders. Approximately 90 percent of the equipment in the auction was sold to Canadian buyers, with buyers from Alberta purchasing 58 percent, while international buyers from countries such as Australia, Germany and Thailand purchased 10 percent of the equipment. Online bidders purchased approximately 74 percent of the equipment.

“With a massive selection of equipment, we saw GTV increase 29% year over year with last week's auction,” said Brian Glenn, Senior Vice President, Head of Canadian Sales, Ritchie Bros. “There continues to be uncertainty in the western Canadian oil and gas and related construction markets, resulting in companies realigning or 'right-sizing' their fleets based on current work projections. We would like to thank all our sellers for trusting us to get them the best possible return for their surplus assets.”

Approximately 1,150 owners sold equipment in the Edmonton auction, including a realignment for Laurlee Energy Services Ltd., a Nisku, AB-based oilfield equipment transportation company.

“It was another positive auction for us,” said Laurie Ryan, Owner & President of Laurlee Energy Services. “Ritchie Bros. has proven their ability to bring in buyers from all over—a couple of my pieces this week sold to a buyer in the U.S. Their marketing is unmatched in the industry and their staff is professional from start to finish. They really are the entire package.”