Operations at Pau Branco Temporarily Halted in 2022 After Damage to Core Waste Pile
Steel pipe maker Vallourec said its Pau Branco iron ore mine would resume full production by the end of the second quarter at the latest, 16 months after operations at the Brazilian plant were halted after heavy rains and flooding caused damage to a core waste pile.
The French firm said it had obtained the necessary permissions from state mining and environmental authorities for the full release of the Cachoeirinha pile, which is used to store accumulated mining debris such as waste rock, tailings and mine water.
The flooding in January 2022 had caused waste material from Cachoeirinha to slide into a rainwater dam generating an overflow that interrupted traffic on a nearby highway. The group said at the time it would contest a subsequent fine of some 45 million euros.
Operations at Pau Branco in central Minas Gerais state had been partially restarted in May 2022 using alternative waste piles, albeit at lower-then-normal capacity levels. Output last year reached 4 million tonnes, well below the mine’s full potential of 8.7 million tonnes per year.
According to the company, production sold in this year’s first quarter was in line with guidance of about 1.5 million tonnes, with output sold in April reaching 0.6 million tonnes.
“We are delighted at the prospect of fully reopening our Pau Branco mine and the resumption of normal operations. This will enable our mining business to contribute more meaningfully to the financial performance of Vallourec,” said Philippe Guillemot, CEO at Vallourec.
Vallourec has been producing iron ore – the key raw material in steelmaking – at the Pau Branco mine since the early 1980s. It processes three types of ore: hematite, goethite and itabirite.
In Brazil, the French firm also operates two plants that make seamless steel tubes for the oil, manufacturing, automotive, energy and civil construction sectors and a forestry facility that produces charcoal that supplies the blast furnaces of the tube-producing plants.
According to research group Statista, Brazil last year was the world’s second largest producer of iron ore after Australia.
Vallourec is a member of the Breakbulk Global Shipper Network, a worldwide network of companies and executives involved in the engineering, manufacturing and production of project cargo. Members of the network will get the opportunity to meet in person in the BGSN Lounge at Breakbulk Europe 2023, taking place on 6-8 June at Rotterdam Ahoy. To reserve your tickets to the exhibition, click here.
PHOTO: Vallourec's Pau Branco mine. CREDIT: Vallourec
