https://www.engineeringnews.co.za
SECURITY
SECURITY
security

Vale says 'no new facts' in internal report on deadly dam disaster

21st February 2020

By: Reuters

  

Font size: - +

SAO PAULO/RIO DE JANEIRO – An in-depth internal report examining the causes of Vale SA's deadly Brumadinho tailings dam disaster last year contained "no new facts, nor surprises," the company's general counsel said on Friday.

Late on Thursday, Vale released the report, which said the company had information as far back as 2003 pointing to the fragility of the B1 dam in Minas Gerais, which burst in January 2019 and killed at least 270 people.

But steps taken to deal with the problem and heighten the dam's security were limited and ineffective, according to the report by a committee led by former Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Ellen Gracie.

"Regarding yesterday's report, the independent committee didn't really bring any new facts, nor surprises to the table," General Counsel Alexandre D'Ambrosio said, when an analyst asked about the report's potential impact on the firm.

"The report is based on the same information that prosecutors and police have already had access to," he said.

Executives also said that they could add an additional $1-billion to $2-billion in provisions related to the disaster, depending on the course of negotiations with authorities.

The market is closely monitoring Vale's reputation, as well as its eventual liabilities related to the disaster, the second deadly dam burst the firm experienced over a four-year period.

On Thursday, the firm also released fourth quarter results, which hit top-line forecasts, but were heavily bogged down by impairments.

Brazil-listed common shares in the miner were down 3.2% in morning trade, while Brazil's benchmark Bovespa index was off 1.4%.

Vale is working to restart dividend payments after a roughly year-long pause following the deadly dam burst, its CEO Bartolomeo said on the Friday call. He added that new dividend payouts would likely be similar in structure to Vale's pre-Brumadinho disaster payouts.

Bartolomeo said as recently as December that it was too early to discuss resuming dividend payments and that the company was fully focused on cleanup and reparations.

Edited by Reuters

Comments

Showroom

SBS Tanks
SBS Tanks

SBS® Tanks is a leading provider of innovative water security solutions with offices in Southern Africa, East and West Africa, the USA and an...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East
Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East

Weir Minerals Europe, Middle East and Africa is a global supplier of excellent minerals solutions, including pumps, valves, hydrocyclones,...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.083 0.134s - 158pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now