Posted on 21 Apr 2021
Vale, the world’s largest iron ore miner with all operations in Brazil, posted iron ore fines production up 14.2% on year to around 68 million tonnes over January-March, confirming as steady recovery from the dam collapse in January 2019, and it has maintained its 2021 production guidance unchanged at 315-335 million tonnes, according to its latest quarterly report released on April 19.
Over January-March, Vale’s sales volumes of iron ore fines and pellets totaled 65.6 million tonnes, up 11% on year due to the higher iron ore production despite the lower availability of pellet feeds, but the volume was down 28.2% on quarter.
Vale attributed the on-year growth in production to its “operational stabilization and resumption plan”. Throughout 2020, Vale had seen the gradual resumption of halted operations in Timbopeba Fábrica and Vargem Grande complexes, Southeast Brazil.
Meanwhile, in the first quarter, stronger performance in Serra Norte and the restart of Serra Leste operations, both in North Brazil, together with less rainfall in January and higher third-party purchases all helped to offset the lost tonnage from the scheduled maintenance at the S11D project in North Brazil and the Itabira complex in Minas Gerais because of tailings disposal restriction in the complex.
Vale’s iron ore output in the first quarter of 2021, however, was still 19.5% down on quarter, which was not surprising, as it is a wet season over January-March, Mysteel Global understood from Vale’s quarterly report, in which Vale confirmed that it reached a production capacity at 327 million tonnes/year in the first quarter. It targets at 350 million t/y by the end of 2021, as reported.
As for demand, Vale noted the robust consumption of higher-grade iron ore products including pellets globally in the first quarter, and Vale’s iron ore price premium grew to $8.3/tonne on average for January-March from $4.3/t in the prior quarter including both higher-grade fines and pellets.
Mysteel’s survey on imported iron ore inventories at China’s 45 ports did show the decline in the Brazilian iron ore on its popularity among the Chinese consumers, with the volume dipping to 41 million tonnes as of April 15 from 44.4 million tonnes in mid-February, an all-time high since Mysteel commenced the survey in December 2015.
Source:Mysteel Global
