Ritchie Bros. Maryland auction draws bidders from around world

NORTH EAST, MD, Oct. 5 /CNW/ - On-site bidders from as far away as Australia , Africa and Panama purchased equipment from the almost US$23 million unreserved public auction conducted by Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA) in North East, Maryland last week ( September 30 & October 1 , 2009). Ritchie Bros. (www.rbauction.com), the world's largest industrial auctioneer, sold more than 2,650 heavy equipment items and trucks over two days, attracting more than 2,530 on-site and online bidders from 40 countries, including all 50 U.S. states. Online bidders purchased more than US$5 million of equipment (23% of the total).

"Being in close proximity to half a dozen ports, our North East auction site has become an international hub for equipment buyers," said Kevin Kobus , Ritchie Bros. Area Manager. "We had a very large, multinational crowd here at the auction site, with active online participation, and that competitive bidding resulted in stronger prices than we've seen in recent auctions here in North East. Reaching a global buying audience is especially important for our customers right now, with demand for construction equipment and trucks down in this region."

H. L. Wiker Inc. was one of more than 300 consignors to the North East auction. The Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based excavation company sold more than 20 heavy equipment items at the auction; some of that equipment went to buyers from Kenya , Thailand and Peru .

"The returns from the auction exceeded our expectations," said company co-owner and vice president Jeff Wiker . "We feel very comfortable working with Ritchie Bros. We have excellent relationships with our local representatives; they value our business and share our values. That's the main reason we chose to sell through them. But we also know that we're not limited to the local market with Ritchie Bros.; they reach that worldwide audience, and I'm sure that's why we saw the results we did."

There are 73 unreserved public auctions on the Ritchie Bros. auction calendar at www.rbauction.com, including the Company's next auction at its permanent auction site in North East on December 16 & 17, 2009.

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.

Investors and potential investors should note that this information may not be indicative of the overall financial performance of the Company for this or any period.

For further information: Kim Schulz, Manager, Corporate Communications, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Mobile: [phone] or email: [email protected]; Or Kevin Kobus, Area Manager, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, North East auction site tel: [phone]