Brazil miner and iron ore producer Vale said on Friday it obtained an operating license for a 101 kilometer extension for a railway connecting its S11D iron ore project to a port terminal.
According to Vale, the operating license was granted by Brazil’s environment authority, Ibama, on Wednesday, and is valid for 10 years.
Vale said the 101 kilometer extension is a “fundamental” work within its Carajas railway logistics project, which includes the company’s flagship iron ore project, S11D.
The company said that through the railway extension the iron ore produced at its Carajas mine will be transported to the EFC railway, in Parauapebas, also in the state of Para. Then, the commodity should be transported to the Ponta da Madeira port terminal, in the state of Maranhao.
Vale said the signing of the document was an “extremely important step” for the S11D project.
The railway extension is part of Vale’s S11D project, which includes the doubling of the EFC railway and the expanding of the Ponta da Madeira terminal. Vale said the S11D project, which includes a number of projects, from the construction works of the mine to the port expansion, is nearly complete.
Physical works at the mine are 90 percent complete, while the logistics part of the project is 79 percent complete.
Total investments reach $14.3 billion, out of which $6.4 billion were used in the construction of the mine and $7.9 billion in port and logistics works.