Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto has put off plans to develop an iron ore port facility at La Agraciada, province of Soriano, western Uruguay for at least one year due to the economic downturn.
La Agraciada iron ore port was expected to cost $320 million and employ about 1,000 people in the construction phase and 180 permanently.
Iron ore from Brazil would be transported to the port via the Parana and Uruguay rivers, and from the Soriano terminal at the mouth of the River Plate the mineral would then be shipped to Europe and China.
According to officials at the Transportation and Public Works ministry of Uruguay, the project would be completed once the global economy recovers.