Brazil steelmaker Gerdau, which recently announced it could increase its iron ore output by 116 percent, may now scale down its plans, according to media reports.
In October, the company said it would increase iron ore output at its Varzea do Lopes mine, in the city of Itabirito, in the state of Minas Gerais. But reports say on Wednesday Gerdau signaled it may scale back plans to expand its iron-ore mines as prices for the commodity hover near five-year lows.
“The pace of investments in mining is being revised,” Gerdau’s CEO, Andre Gerdau Johannpeter said in a conference call.
According to reports, Gerdau was planning an aggressive effort to increase its iron-ore production nearly fourfold between 2012 and 2020 to growing demand from China. But growth in the Asian country has slowed, making Gerdau revise its expansion plans.