Samarco

We hold a 50% interest in Samarco, a non-operated joint venture in Brazil. The company employs around 11,000 people directly and indirectly and produces iron ore pellets through its operating units in Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo states.

Samarco has its own integrated logistics, which includes mines, concentrators and pelletizing plants for the processing of iron ore, with pipelines that connect the two operating units and a port terminal for the export of production.

After the stoppage caused by the Fundão dam failure in 2015, Samarco resumed its operations in a different, more sustainable way, with new technologies and improved safety systems. The restart is gradual - since December 2020, the company has been operating with 26% of its production capacity.

Samarco at a glance

A new filtration system was implemented to enable the company to operate without the use of dams, with 80% of the generated tailings being dry stacked and the rest deposited in a confined rocky pit. In addition, the Germano dam and pit, which have been deactivated since 2015, are going through a decommissioning process, in line with new Brazilian legislation.
15.5 milliontonnes of pellets produced since December 2020
Over 149Shipments to internal and external markets
USD 416Mgenerated in tax income to November 2022

Reparation actions

The 42 programs run by the Renova Foundation are divided into three thematic axes: people and community; land and water; and reconstruction and infrastructure. The preparation and execution of the programs are based on the involvement of communities at all stages, and rely on constant monitoring and independent external audits to transparently validate each program’s progress.
USD 5.44b disbursed in remediation and compensation actions to October 2022.
USD 2.4b paid in compensation and emergency financial aid to October 2022.
407,700 impacted people received indemnification.

Discover a new Samarco

The company resumed operations differently, using new technologies.

A new filtration system allows for the dry stacking of 80% of the generated tailings and the rest is deposited in a confined pit. Visit the website to find out more about Samarco's restart.