Vale Holds Talks to Expand World's Biggest Open-Pit Iron Mine
- Vale in talks to increase iron ore processing plant, railway
- Licensing is easier for an expansion than for new mine project
Photographer: Dado Galdieri/Bloomberg
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Vale SA is holding talks with Brazilian officials about expanding the world’s largest open pit iron-ore mine to meet growing Chinese demand for the high-grade ore.
The Rio de Janeiro-based company recently sat down with regulators to discuss expanding its $14 billion mine located in the Amazon rainforest, which hasn’t even reached capacity yet. At the meeting, Vale mentioned the possibility of increasing ore-processing infrastructure and the railway that hauls the steel-making ingredient to port, Brazil’s federal environmental agency Ibama said in an email.