After preventing Vale’s large iron ore carriers to dock at Chinese ports for three years, the nation’s government said on Friday it will now allow the Brazilian miner to load its 400,000/mt ships at four ports.
The ports of Qingdao, Dalian, Tangshan Caofeidian and Ningbo will allow Vale to dock its Valemax giant vessels, once the Brazilian company meets the “technical standards”, China's state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, said in a joint statement with the nation’s Ministry of Transport.
Vale had been prevented to dock its Valemax vessels in China since early 2012, as a result of safety concerns.
Media reports estimate Vale could cut costs by $4-6/mt by sending the commodity directly to China.
Earlier this year, Vale signed a deal with Cosco to sell four large ore carriers (VLOCs) for $445 million.