Vale stops iron ore production in the Fazendao region of Brazil for some reason

SMM3, June 6: Brazilian miner Vale has decided to stop mining Fazendao iron ore in (Minas Gerais), Minas Gerais state, because the licensed resources in the mine have now been mined and can not continue to mine iron ore in the mine. The Fazendao mine is part of the (Mariana) plant in Mariana, southeast of Vale, which produced 11.296 million metric tons of iron ore in 2019, down 57.6 per cent from 2018. Market participants speculate that the mine, as part of the Mariana plant, has an annual capacity of about 1 million to 2 million tons.

Vale said it would seek to expand new mines that have not yet been licensed and redistribute mine staff according to operational needs. But market participants say Vale's application for an extended license was rejected by local authorities in Catas Altas in late February.

Vale said it would hold a public hearing on the project in the near future to expand the operation of other mines that have not yet been licensed.

Weak sales at the Mariana plant have prompted Vale to shift supply tasks to other mines, so the shutdown is unlikely to have a big impact, according to one Chinese trader.

Another Chinese trader said: "production in the mine area may have been suspended for some time and Malaysia's reserves can be used as a buffer before we see any disruption in BRBF shipments."

Export data seen by Platts Energy show that from February 24 to March 1, the port of Tubarang in southern Brazil exported about 1.61 million tons of iron ore, the highest weekly export volume so far in 2020, because the weather conditions during the monsoon season are better than in previous years.

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