Vale – Page 46 – Republic of Mining

Rio Tinto drags Ernst & Young into Vale case – by Matt Chambers (The Australian – September 3, 2015)

September 3, 2015

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

Rio Tinto has dragged big four audit firm Ernst & Young into a bitter conspiracy and theft case against fellow mining giant Vale, with Rio alleging EY altered an initial assessment of corruption risk in a Guinea iron ore deal after pressure from Vale.

Rio is chasing billions of dollars in compensation from Vale after two of Rio’s four Simandou mining tenements were stripped from it by the government in 2008.

The northern Simandou tenements were given to BSG Resources, a company run by Israeli diamond merchant Beny Steinmetz, who Rio alleges was acting in tandem with Vale as BSGR bribed Guinean officials to take the Simandou tenements from Rio. Rio wants to see EY’s due diligence for a 2010 report on BSGR that was commissioned by Vale on bribery and corruption risk.

“Information showing that Ernst & Young informed Vale that BSGR had engaged in illegal and corrupt practices is relevant to Rio’s allegations regarding the conspiracy involving Vale and BSGR … because Vale did nothing to pull out of the deal,” Rio’s lawyers said in an August letter filed in the southern New York district of the US Federal Court and obtained by The Australian.

Vale green-lights underground mine at Voisey’s Bay – by John Cumming (August 19, 2015)

August 26, 2015

The Northern Miner, first published in 1915, during the Cobalt Silver Rush, is considered Canada’s leading authority on the mining industry. Editor John Cumming MSc (Geol) is one of the country’s most well respected mining journalists. jcumming@northernminer.com

The natural resources industry of Newfoundland and Labrador — beaten down as it is by the steep decline in iron ore and oil prices — has received a most welcome board-level confirmation from Vale that it will indeed pursue underground mining at its Voisey’s Bay nickel-copper-cobalt mine in northern Labrador, once the open pit is exhausted in 2020.

Based on current resources, that would add at least another 15 years of life to the mine, which started operations in 2005.

The Voisey’s Bay site consists of a 6,000-tonne-per-day open pit and a concentrator that produces nickel-copper-cobalt concentrate, plus a copper concentrate, at a rate of 40,000 tonnes of nickel in concentrate per year. The remote, coastal site is accessible by air and sea, with concentrate stored and shipped out on a seasonal basis before the site is locked in by ice.

The decision to go underground at Voisey’s ensures a steady feed of nickel concentrate to Vale’s new US$4.3-billion Long Harbour Processing Plant (LHPP) in the town of Long Harbour on southeastern Newfoundland’s Avalon Peninsula.

Milkweed takes root on Vale slag pile – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 21, 2015)

August 21, 2015

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North. Ian Ross is the editor of Northern Ontario Business ianross@nob.on.ca.

The mountainous slag piles at nickel miner Vale in Sudbury are becoming a favourite landing spot for one of nature’s most threatened species.

A milkweed patch has also been established at the base of the waste industrial material on the periphery of the company’s Copper Cliff smelter complex in an effort to attract and boost the declining monarch butterfly population.

Long considered a nuisance plant, milkweed has been disappearing fast in recent decades due to the use of chemical herbicides and deforestation. The plant is crucial to the survival of the monarch butterfly on its journey between Mexico and Canada. It’s the only suitable plant for monarch to lay their eggs and is also a main food source of monarch caterpillars.

Lisa Lanteigne, Vale’s manager of environment, soil and water, first noticed the hardy perennial growing naturally at her Manitoulin Island cottage.

UPDATE 1-Brazil court orders Vale to halt Amazon nickel-mine operation (Reuters U.S. – August 14, 2015)

August 14, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

Aug 14 (Reuters) – A Brazilian federal court on Friday ordered Vale SA to halt activity at its Onça Puma nickel mine in Brazil’s Amazon state of Pará until it can demonstrate what actions it has taken to compensate indigenous communities in the region.

Vale’s operations in Pará face regular legal and protest action by native Brazilian groups seeking better schools, health care and other public services.

Onça Puma, in Ourilândia do Norte, is part of a complex of mines operated by Vale in the state’s Carajas region. The mine produced 5,900 tonnes of finished nickel in the second quarter, or about 8.8 percent of Vale’s finished-nickel output.

The most common protest by indigenous groups has involved blocking Vale’s rail line between Carajas and the Atlantic Ocean.

The court also ordered Vale, the world’s second-largest nickel producer, to deposit 1 million reais ($287,000) for each indigenous village in the area until it establishes a compensation program for the communities.

Copper Cliff takes leak in stride – by Ryan Byrne (Sudbury Star – August 14, 2015)

August 14, 2015

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

Thursday’s leak of nitrogen dioxide at Vale’s acid plant has at least one Copper Cliff resident thinking.

Carrie Calvano said the situation was scary. “I didn’t hear (the horn) initially and then when I went to let my dog out, I heard the sirens and the trucks and everything coming in – I even had my radio on,” Calvano said.

“I closed everything and got my husband out of bed and said, ‘OK, let’s see what happens.'” Calvano said she received a call from her work telling her not to come in until the situation was resolved.

“It was scary – we had to let our dog out and she really had to go, but we had to wait and she doesn’t understand. We had phone calls from all the relatives making sure we were OK.”

Calvano said she has been living in Copper Cliff for 14 years worry free, but has been re-evaluating her lack of concern after yesterday’s events.

Gas leak didn’t endanger public: Vale – by Ben Leeson (Sudbury Star – August 14, 2015)

August 14, 2015

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

It was a tense Thursday morning for those who live and work in Copper Cliff and the surrounding area, but no injuries have been reported after two gases combined to form a toxic mist at the Vale acid plant.

While a joint investigation into the cause of the gas leak is still ongoing, company officials said there was a larger-than-expected reaction between water used to wash out a cooling tower and the acid remaining inside. That created a yellow plume of NOx, a combination of nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide, in the air above the site.

Exposure to nitrogen dioxide can cause irritation of the nose, throat, eyes, skin and respiratory system. Large doses are potentially fatal. The gas is also a major pollutant that plays a role in causing smog.

Air horns began sounding at the smelter around 6 a.m. and a Level 3 emergency, denoting a release of hazardous material, was called. Police and emergency services personnel responded and roads around the area were closed to traffic, while residents were cautioned through local media to remain indoors.

Toxic gas leak contained at Sudbury mining facility (CTV News Sudbury – August 13, 2015)

August 13, 2015

http://www.ctvnews.ca/

SUDBURY, Ont. — The Canadian Press — Toxic gas that leaked from a Sudbury mining facility early Thursday has dissipated and no longer poses a risk to the community, the mining company said.

Residents near the Vale facility at Copper Cliff had been told to stay inside with the windows and doors closed due to a release of nitrogen dioxide.

UPDATED: Vale sanctions underground mine at Voisey’s Bay (CBC News Newfoundland – August 10, 2015)

August 10, 2015

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

Will extend mine life to 2035 and nearbly double workforce to 850

Mining giant Vale has approved construction of an underground mine at Voisey’s Bay that will extend the life of the northern Labrador mine by about 15 years and provide hundreds more jobs.

A company spokesman said construction will begin next year, and is timed to ensure a continuity of supply for the new multi-billion-dollar nickel processing plant in Long Harbour.

“For us it’s a natural evolution of the mine there,” said Cory McPhee, vice-president of corporate affairs for Vale’s base metals business.

“We’ve always known that the open pit was going to be exhausted at some point. And going underground was the next natural step. And that’s the key to exploiting the resource that’s available to us.”

It will take about five years to complete the underground mine, which is about the same time the surface mine is expected to reach the end of its lifespan.

Brazil the winner from the Andrew Forrest way – by Matthew Stevens (Australian Financial Review – August 10, 2015)

August 10, 2015

http://www.afr.com/

The only way Australia and its miners would benefit from any form of co-ordinated iron ore production constraint would be if Brazil could be convinced to add its name to our cartel.

But even with Brazil’s unlikely and illegal embrace of a cartel, the net gains for Australia would be marginal and fleeting, says the most authoritative and technical analysis conducted yet on Andrew Forrest’s contention that Australia’s economy is being abused by its biggest iron ore miners, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton.

Forrest and his company Fortescue continue to rail about planned expansion, under which both their Pilbara competitors will add about 20 million tonnes to production over coming years, while Gina Rinehart introduces another 55 million tonnes to an already bloated global system.

Having initially taken the Forrest bait on the idea of some sort of market review, governments state and federal promptly backed off after some unusually blunt criticism from the likes of BHP boss Andrew Mackenzie.

But that didn’t settle things for good old Brian Fisher. Fisher is the economist who ran the Australian Bureau of Agriculture and Resource Economics during its pomp as government’s commodity industry number cruncher, and now directs his own firm, called BAEconomics.

UPDATE 3-Vale returns to profit, signals cut to 2016 iron ore outlook – by Stephen Eisenhammer(Reuters U.S. – July 30, 2015)

July 30, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

(Reuters) – Vale SA, the world’s biggest iron ore producer, returned to profit in the second quarter, bolstered by higher output and cost cuts as it kept up pressure on Australian rivals in its fight for market share.

But as the Brazilian miner battles to increase margins, Vale said iron ore production next year will likely be less than the 376 million tonnes it had previously forecast.

“Probably we’ll be between the guidance we gave… and the 340 million tonnes we are producing in 2015,” iron ore chief Peter Poppinga told analysts on a conference call, adding the company was phasing out higher-cost production.

Vale overcame a slump in iron ore prices to report a net profit of $1.68 billion on Thursday, moving into the black for the first time in a year. That was a jump of 17.3 percent from the same quarter a year ago, and more than four times the average forecast of $408 million of six analysts in a Reuters poll.

Vale’s Nickel IPO Chances Wane as Fires, Shutdowns Hurt Output – by Juan Pablo Spinetto(Bloomberg News – July 23, 2015)

July 24, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/

A fire in Canada, disruptions in Indonesia and shutdowns in Brazil and New Caledonia: it was tough getting nickel out of the ground last quarter for Vale SA.

Output of the metal at Vale, the world’s largest producer, missed estimates for a second consecutive quarter. The lower-than-expected production comes as a plunge in metal prices makes the Rio de Janeiro-based company’s plan to sell as much as 30 percent of the unit in an initial public offering less likely.

Vale said in its second-quarter output report Thursday that nickel production rose less than 9 percent to 67,100 metric tons, missing a 73,900-ton average forecast by seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The result, called “poor” by BMO Capital Markets in a research note, puts production for the first half at 136,000 tons, or less than 45 percent of the company’s annual target of 303,000 tons.

Operations in the quarter were affected by a fire at its operations in Sudbury, Ontario, which reduced nickel and copper production by 5,000 tons each, furnace maintenance in Indonesia and a “brief shutdown” for plant improvement at the Onca Puma project in Brazil, Vale said. The miner is planning to close facilities at Sudbury and Thompson in August for maintenance, it said.

NEWS RELEASE: VALE, THE UNITED STEELWORKERS AND CROSH KICK-OFF GROUNDBREAKING NEW STUDY ON MINING AND MENTAL HEALTH

July 23, 2015

(L to R) France Gélinas, MPP Nickel Belt; Jody Kuzenko, Director of Vale’s Ontario Production Services; Leo Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers; Dr. Michel Larivière, clinical psychologist and Associate Director at CROSH; Hon Kevin Daniel Flynn, Ontario Minister of Labour; Dr. Tammy Eger, Research Chair in Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) and Associate Professor in Laurentian’s School of Human Kinetics

SUDBURY, ON (July 23, 2015) – Today Vale and the United Steelworkers, in partnership with the Centre for Research in Occupational Safety and Health (CROSH) at Laurentian University, announced a groundbreaking new research project on the topic of mental health in the mining industry.

The aim of the 3-year study, called ‘Mining Mental Health’, is to gain vital information in order to develop key strategies that promote the best possible mental health for workers at Vale’s Ontario Operations. In addition, this study will contribute substantially to the body of research to help others in the mining industry and similar sectors to develop evidence-based practices that effectively promote positive mental health.

[Vale] World’s Top Iron-Ore Miner Presses on Output as Price Slide – by Juan Pablo Spinetto (Bloomberg News – July 23, 2015)

July 23, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Vale SA boosted iron-ore production last quarter to the second-highest ever for the company, exceeding analyst estimates and worsening a supply glut that saw prices of the steelmaking ingredient collapse.

Iron-ore output rose 7.4 percent to 85.3 million metric tons in the quarter through June 30, compared with 79.4 million tons a year ago, the company said in a statement Thursday. The result, which excludes third-party purchases and operations at a venture with BHP Billiton Plc, topped the 82.5 million-ton average of eight analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

The Rio de Janeiro-based company, the world’s top iron-ore producer, is expanding supply to a record 340 million tons this year while seeking to replace low-quality ore with premium products to improve profits. The expansion by Vale and its main rivals BHP and Rio Tinto Group coincides with an unexpected decline in demand from China, the biggest iron-ore buyer, prompting Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to forecast weaker prices in incoming quarters.

The increase in Vale’s three main production systems was driven by better-than-expected weather and expanded operations at the N4WS mine and Plant 2 unit in the Carajas complex, Vale said in the statement. Output for the first-half reached a record 159.8 million tons, 6.2 percent more than last year.

Production cuts by Vale and Rio will not solve iron ore glut – by Neil Hume (Financial Times – July 17, 2015)

July 17, 2015

http://www.ft.com/home/us

The bruised and battered iron ore industry finally received some good news this week. First, Vale said it would withdraw 25m-30m tonnes of annual production from the market then Rio Tinto cut its total 2015 export forecast by 10m tonnes to 340m tonnes.

While welcome, it would be a mistake to think these announcements mark the beginning of a disciplined response from the industry’s biggest producers to an ongoing supply glut. They don’t.

Take Vale’s “cut”. After its share price jumped more than 6 per cent on the news, the Brazilian miner moved to clarify the remarks made by Peter Poppinga, its executive director of ferrous minerals.

Vale said there was no change to its output guidance for the year of 340m tonnes, or its longer-term target to produce 450m tonnes by 2018. Rather it was cutting production of high cost iron ore — the key ingredient in steelmaking — and replacing it with cleaner, lower cost output from some of its other mines.

Vale’s designs on China add to Rio, BHP drive for more iron ore – by James Regan (Reuters U.S. – July 15, 2015)

July 16, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

SYDNEY – As Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton ship more iron ore than ever to China, the Australia mining giants face a fightback from Brazil’s Vale for market share that threatens to drive already weak prices even lower.

Rio Tinto and BHP, which will release quarterly production data this week and next, have been racing to keep up exports to boost profits while lower prices eat into margins.

They now face stiffer competition from Vale, which is also working its mines harder, after the world’s biggest producer won approval for its giant Valemax ships to unload in China, cutting down on freight costs.

With a capacity of 400,000 tonnes each, the 34 Valemaxes are the world’s biggest bulk carriers and twice the size of vessels used by Rio and BHP, but a ban on entering Chinese ports had severely curbed the cost efficiencies of the larger ships.

“BHP and Rio have been looking to raise volumes in this environment to maximize every tonne,” said Morgans Financial analyst James Wilson.