Samarco to add revenue, hit output goal sooner after Vale deal

Brazilian miner Samarco is expected to add $5.1 billion in net revenue by 2042 and bring forward its iron ore output goal after signing a 20-year production agreement with Vale SA, it said on Thursday.

Samarco, an iron ore joint venture of Vale and BHP Group Ltd , is looking to hit its output guidance sooner than expected as it now plans to resume production at its C#2 and C#1 ventures in 2026 and 2029, respectively, from previous expectations for 2028 and 2030.

The miner expects to reach total production of 25.7 million tonnes of iron ore pellets in 2030, a year earlier than previously projected.

The company has been operating at a reduced capacity since late 2020, when it resumed production after being shut for five years following the deadly collapse of a tailings dam near the city of Mariana in the state of Minas Gerais, which killed 19 people and caused massive environmental damage.

(By Marta Nogueira and Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Bernadette Baum)