Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers to officially open new 60-acre auction site in
Grande Prairie

    
    More than 1,400 items at two-day Grand Opening auction to attract local
    and international bidders
    

GRANDE PRAIRIE, AB, Nov. 10 /CNW/ - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA), the world's largest industrial auctioneer, will be celebrating the Grand Opening of its brand new permanent auction site (located at Range Road 51 & Hwy 43) in Grande Prairie, Alberta with a two-day, multi-million dollar unreserved public equipment auction from Tuesday, November 24th to Wednesday, November 25th starting at 8:00 a.m. each day.

"The new site is double the size of our former property," said Brian Podruzny, Regional Manager, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers. "The site features a larger yard and more spacious facilities that will allow our customers to sell more equipment and provide an even greater selection of equipment at fair market value for local and international buyers."

More than 1,400 items from close to 120 equipment sellers will be sold over the course of the two-day public auction. Highlights of the auction include 24 rock trucks being sold on Day One (November 24th), including 15 late model, low-hour Cat 777D rock trucks, Cat 773B and 773D rock trucks and two 2002 Komatsu HD785-5 rock trucks.

Since acquiring its first auction site in Grande Prairie in 2002, Ritchie Bros. has conducted 50 auctions there. The Company's new 60+/- acre auction site located at Range Road 51 will replace the former 31+/- acre auction site located at 14606 100 Street.

Approximately 60 acres (24 hectares) of the new site are currently developed, with 260+/- acres (105 hectares) remaining undeveloped to facilitate future expansion. The auction building at the new site is the second largest auction building currently operated by Ritchie Bros. in the world-a 39,923-square foot building complete with an 800-seat auction theatre. The site also features a 30,625-square foot refurbishing facility with a 90 foot long paint booth designed for refurbishing construction, logging and mining equipment. The new auction site also has a 900-vehicle lot for customer parking.

On Day One ( November 24th ) of the two-day auction, a ribbon cutting ceremony marking the Company's official opening of the new auction site will be held at 12:30 p.m. with the participation of the following people:

    
    -   Grande Prairie Mayor Dwight Logan;
    -   Grande Prairie Reeve Everett McDonald;
    -   Ritchie Bros. CEO Peter Blake;
    -   Ritchie Bros. Senior Vice President Kevin Tink;
    -   Ritchie Bros. Divisional Manager Brian Glenn; and
    -   Ritchie Bros. Regional Manager Brian Podruzny
    

Other items being featured in the auction include agricultural equipment, oilfield transportation equipment, crawler tractors, hydraulic excavators, articulated dump trucks, motor scrapers, motor graders, compaction equipment, logging equipment, drills, winch tractors, bed trucks and a large quantity of other types of trucks and trailers. Construction equipment is scheduled to be sold on Day One ( November 24th ) of the auction and transportation equipment on Day Two (November 25th). New items will be added to the sale right through to auction day. Every item in the auction will be sold to the highest bidders, with no minimum bids or reserve prices.

Interested buyers can register at the new Grande Prairie auction site the weekend prior to the auction and on auction day, over the internet if they plan on bidding online or by proxy via telephone by contacting the Grande Prairie auction site at +1.780.538.1100.

    
    Grand Opening auction details:
    ------------------------------
    -   Location: Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers brand new permanent auction site
        in Grande Prairie, Range Road 51 & Hwy 43, Grande Prairie, AB
    -   Grande Prairie auction site tel: [phone]
    -   Auction start time and date: Tuesday, November 24th to Wednesday,
        November 25th 2009 starting at 8:00 a.m. each day
    -   Grand Opening ribbon cutting ceremony: Tuesday, November 24th on the
        auction ramp at approximately 12:30 p.m.
    -   Unreserved auction is open to the public; registration to bid is free
    -   Visit the auction site to register to bid in person; photo I.D. is
        required. First-time bidders from the U.S. and Canada must place a
        refundable CDN$1,000 deposit when they register. Customers can
        inspect, test and compare equipment during regular business hours
        leading up to the auction
    -   Internet bidders must register online before auction day at
        www.rbauction.com; at least 2-3 business days is recommended for
        first-time internet bidders.
    -   Phone the auction site to place a proxy bid. Phone: + 1.780.538.1100
    -   Equipment details, including photos, are available at
        www.rbauction.com
    

About Ritchie Bros.

Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA) is the world's largest industrial auctioneer, selling more equipment to on-site and online bidders than any other company in the world. The Company has over 110 locations in more than 25 countries, including 39 auction sites worldwide. Ritchie Bros. sells, through unreserved public auctions, a broad range of used and unused industrial assets, including equipment, trucks and other assets utilized in the construction, transportation, agricultural, material handling, mining, forestry, petroleum and marine industries. The Company maintains a web site at www.rbauction.com and sponsors an equipment wiki at www.RitchieWiki.com.

ATTENTION MEDIA: Photos of rock trucks being sold in the Grand Opening auction are available for your use at www.rbauction.com/media or by calling Kim Schulz at the contact number below.

For further information: Kim Schulz, Manager, Corporate Communications, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Phone: [phone] or email [email protected]; Or Brian Podruzny, Regional Manager, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Grande Prairie auction site, tel: [phone]