Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Incorporated has announced that it has completed its final auction for 2002 and has achieved gross auction sales in excess of USD $1.37 billion. Final numbers and full financial results will be made public on February 26, 2003.

During 2002, Ritchie Bros. held 141 auction sales in 10 countries around the world. The auctions attracted a record number of more than 156,000 registered bidders; with 50,000 of these being successful buyers. In 2001, more than 139,000 bidders participated in the company’s auctions and approximately 46,000 were successful buyers.

The company also worked with a record number of consignors. In 2002, Ritchie Bros. received more than 20,000 consignments to its auctions, totaling about 150,000 lots, compared to 19,000 consignments and 136,000 lots in 2001.

The year also marked the launch and roll out of the company’s real time Internet bidding service, rbauctionBid-Live. The service, which enhances the company’s live auction events, was launched in March and completely deployed by the end of the year. Already, more than 3,500 customers from 52 countries have registered to use the rbauctionBid-Live service to participate in Ritchie Bros. live unreserved auctions. In 2002 they used the service to purchase $76 million worth of trucks and equipment.

Randy Wall, president and COO of the Ritchie Bros., stated, "2002 was an exciting year for us. The successful launch and deployment of live Internet bidding and the continued expansion of our international network of auction facilities has allowed us to do an even better job of delivering a global marketplace for trucks and equipment."

Ritchie Bros. already has several auctions scheduled for 2003 including five days of auction activity in Florida in February.

For more information visit www.rbauction.com.

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