Brazilian steelmakers have called for an urgent solution regarding production stoppages in iron ore miner Vale's southeastern system, after a disastrous accident in January this year at a tailings dam in the C??rrego do Feij??o mine, according to national steel association Instituto A??o Brasil.
"The current situation of raw materials supply cannot be maintained for long," A??o Brasil executive president Marco Polo de Mello Lopes said on Thursday April 18.The resulting stoppage of significant volumes of output in Minas Gerais state has affected the supply of raw materials, especially iron ore pellets, to steelmakers. Vale provides Brazilian steelmakers with around 46% of their iron ore and 90% of their pellets.The Brazilian miner has faced restrictions totaling 93 million tonnes per year of capacity at its mines, including Brucutu, Vargem Grande, Alegria and Timbopeba.But it has obtained permission from a Brazilian court to resume operations at the 30 million-tpy Brucutu mine, which could happen by...