Vale aims to restart iron ore capacity by 2021

Brazilian mining company Vale plans to restart 60mn t/yr of iron ore capacity by 2021 in Minas Gerais province, where operations have been suspended since the 25 January tailings dam accident at its Feijao iron ore mine.

Vale expects to resume operations at its Minas Itabirito and Mariana complexes next year, while the Vargem Grande complex is likely to restart in two years.

Vale produced a total of 384.6mn t of iron ore in 2018.

A tailings dam accident killed over 200 people at Vale's Feijao mine. The closure of mines in the Minas Gerais province — some undertaken voluntarily and others on government and court orders — following the accident has led to the company forecasting a 50mn-75mn t fall in iron ore shipments this year to 307mn-332mn t.

The closed mines supplied high-silica, medium-grade fines used to blend high-grade IOCJ fines to produce the BRBF blend, as well as pellet feed concentrate.

The Feijao accident did not cause disruptions to Vale's larger northern system mines.

The company said that it is exploring selling hot-briquetted iron and pig iron produced at biomass-fired plants, as steel mills globally look to produce steel through greener processes.

In China, Vale expects additional demand of 50mn t/yr for pellet and pellet feed over the next few years as steel mills are likely to lift the ratio of pellet in their furnace burden to 19pc in 2025 from 14pc in 2018, as China builds larger emissions-efficient mills in coastal regions.

Vale has launched a new pellet feed product GF88 made by grounding 65pc IOCJ fines at Chinese ports. It expects to produce 30mn t/yr of GF88 in the medium term. Supply of GF88 could be around 10mn t in 2020, said a Morgan Stanley analyst report.