Anglo American said on Monday a slurry pipeline used to transport iron ore from the states of Minas Gerais to Rio de Janeiro has burst.
It said there was a leak of the product in a local river near the city of Santo Antonio de Grama, in Minas Gerais state. Anglo said the product leaked isn’t dangerous and there were no victims at the time of the incident. Anglo said it has interrupted the flow of the commodity through the slurry pipeline and as of Monday just water was shed.
The usual content consists of 70 percent iron ore and 30 percent water.
The Minas-Rio iron ore project is comprised of an open pit mine, a beneficiation plant producing high-grade pellet feed, and a 529kmlong (328milelong) pellet feed-transporting slurry pipeline connecting different cities in the states of Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro.
It remains unclear if the interrupted slurry pipeline may affect the company’s Minas-Rio iron ore project in Brazil. Additionally, Anglo did not immediately explain if iron ore sales will be affected.