Russian state diamond monopoly Alrosa has secured a $500 million short-term refinancing loan, with a two-year maturity, from VTB Bank, the latter said in a statement.

According to a VTB Bank press release, the new financing plan will allow the diamond company "to cut the share of short-term debt and to lower its expenses for debt servicing."

The refinancing loan, added the bank, is mostly "for the purpose of (Alrosa's) debt portfolio optimization. The Company will channel the funds into refinancing the current short-term debts under loans from Russian banks."

Moscow-owned Alrosa Co. Ltd. is one of the largest diamond producers in the world, with a 30% market share. In 2009, the Alrosa Group became the world leader in diamond recovery, with rough diamond production coming to $34 billion.