Brazilian iron ore and pellets producer Samarco, controlled by Vale and BHP, produced 2.29 million mt of pellets in Q3 2022, against 2.00 million mt in the previous quarter and 2.09 million mt in Q3 2021.
According to a report by BHP, the production level in Q3 reflects continued production of one concentrator, limited by restrictions since the restart of its production in December 2020.
Such restrictions, derived from the mine’s waste dam collapse in 2015, are keeping three of its four pellet plants on hold. The current guidance for annual production of Samarco is in a range of 6.0 to 8.0 million mt, while at full capacity it can produce 31 million mt of pellets per year.
The most recent plan of the company is to return to full capacity pace by 2026.
