Brazilian court clears BHP, Vale and Samarco of charges in 2015 dam disaster
A court in Belo Horizonte ruled that state prosecutors failed to prove that "individual actions" directly contributed to the collapse of the dam.
Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said the federal government wants to meet with Vale (NYSE: VALE) representatives to “demand” that the mining company compensate the families affected by the dam collapse in Brumadinho and Mariana, Minas Gerais, in 2015.
“Next week, we have to call Vale and demand that they pay for the damages that people have suffered,” said Lula in a speech during a ceremony announcing federal government investments in Pernambuco.
Lula has repeatedly criticized Vale for not paying compensation to the victims of the two dam collapses that killed a total of 289 people. Last week, he said the mining company was “dragging its feet.”
“To this day, the company has not paid the rights of the poor people,” Lula added.
The Brazilian President is expected to meet with Vale representatives next week.
Lawyers representing claimants taking legal action over the 2015 Mariana disaster filed an injunction last week against miners BHP (NYSE: BHP) and Vale for allegedly “trying to derail” a potential £36 billion ($46 billion) London lawsuit.
Vale, BHP and their joint venture Samarco presented Brazilian authorities with a $26.09 billion offer to settle reparations for the dam collapse earlier in June after Brazil rejected a previous offer.
For Brumadinho, a settlement agreement was reached in February 2021, two years after the dam collapsed.
Vale agreed to pay at least 37.68 billion reais ($6.85 billion) in collective damages. Nearly 1.3 billion reais ($240 million) was for direct reparations to the victims’ families.
