The Brazilian miner Vale, the land transportation agency ANTT and the country’s ministry of transportation have reached a deal, whereby Vale will pay an additional BRL1.7 billion ($275 million) in relation to the concession for the Carajás (EFC) and Vitória-Minas (EFVM) railroads, which was the object of additional terms established in December 2020.
Under the deal of December 2020, the concessions were extended by the previous government by more than 30 years, an extension considered as exaggerated and extemporaneous by the current administration.
Such a dispute was directly impacting the perspectives of Vale and was considered as the main factor behind the recent change of the CEO of the company, when Gustavo Pimenta replaced Eduardo Bartolomeu, who was against the agreement.
Under the new agreement and including the previous conditions, Vale will pay a total of BRL 11 billion in investments in the railroads, and an additional BRL 6.0 billion for the development of a new railroad that will connect ports in the states Rio de Janeiro and Espirito Santo to the national railroad grid.
The new agreement is still subject to the approval of the upper civil court STJ.