Brazilian flats producer Usiminas is currently evaluating the possibility of restarting iron ore operations, as just one of the four iron ore plants it has is currently operating.
“We have four iron ore plants and we’re operating today just one. To restart one more plant, we need the markets to be stabilized. If the indicators show stability in a long term, we can start exporting [iron ore] again,” said Wilfred Bruijn, managing director of Mineracao Usiminas (MUSA), Usiminas’ mining arm.
“In order to restart the second plant as I just mentioned, this is not an easy decision to make. This involves a number of things: you have to hire personnel, you have to renegotiate terms with suppliers, but obviously, if we assume a new plant because of exports, well, this will help us in terms of cost per ton, because the rest of our cost does not depend on the volume,” he said, while talking to investors and analysts this week during a conference call.
Romel Erwin, CEO at Usiminas, said the company is still looking to sell non-core assets.
“We are focused on selling non-operating assets. … [As for] Usiminas Mecanica, we are still waiting for the presentation of [a] proposal,” the executive said, while referring to it as the company’s “most valuable” asset.