The company says current weak prices for cobalt don't justify expanding daily throughput to 6,000 tonnes from 4,650 tonnes at its proposed Nico project.
In securities filings, Vale projected costs from halted operations related to its dam that burst to fall from $3-$4 per tonne of iron ore in the third quarter to $2.5-$3.5 per tonne in the fourth quarter.
It's the latest initiative in eastern DRC to improve systems meant to show minerals entering global supply chains come from mines that don’t use child labour or fund warlords and corrupt soldiers.