Noble Group, the Hong Kong-based supply chain managing agricultural, industrial and energy products, has announced its acquisition of a 30 percent stake in Brazilian iron miner, Mhag Servicos E Mineracao S/A (Mhag).
Mhag has 3.8 billion tons of estimated iron ore reserves in five different areas of the Rio Grande do Norte and Paraiba states of Brazil. The company, already producing and shipping high quality iron ore through the port of Suape in the state of Pernambuco, plans to increase production capacity through a two-stage project - upping it to 3.6 million tons per year in the first phase which starts immediately, and to 10 million tons per year by 2009 in the project's second phase.
To achieve this volume, Mhag will invest in a five million ton-capacity pellet production facility with a slurry pipeline extending approximately 130 km from Jucurutu to Porto do Mangue, both in the state of Rio Grande do Norte.
With this acquisition, Noble will also undertake global marketing and supply chain operations for iron ore produced by Mhag.