Brazilian pellet producer Samarco, a joint venture between Vale and BHP Billiton, expects to restart its mining operations at its Minas Gerais iron ore mine in the fourth quarter of the current year, its chief executive Roberto Carvalho told Reuters on March 10. Operations at the mine in Minas Gerais were halted following an iron ore dam burst in November last year.
Mr. Carvalho also told Reuters that for at least two years the company expects to produce 19 million mt of iron ore pellet per year, which is lower than the average annual production of about 30 million mt before the dam burst, until finding a permanent solution to store the tailings.
Samarco agreed to pay BRL 4.4 billion ($1.09 billion) over three years for the recovery plan for the Doce river that was harmed by the dam burst. Recovery of the river will take about 10 years and Samarco could pay more if BRL 4.4 billion is not enough.