Brazilian miner and iron ore producer Vale was ordered to present guarantees it has BRL 7.9 billion ($1.5 billion) in cash to pay for eventual fines due to corruption charges within a 10-day timeline.
Vale said on Wednesday it was aware of the court injunction, but said the court didn’t consult the company before issuing the decision.
Minas Gerais state prosecutors asked the court to charge Vale with corruption, under the anti-corruption section of law number 12,846 from 2013. Prosecutors claim Vale used a pressure, retaliation and reward mechanism to “corrupt the dam certification” market.
Prosecutors said such a system made consulting and external audit companies hired by Vale to hide the serious instability of dams from official authorities. Prosecutors requested the $1.5 billion and other assets from Vale to be frozen. They also demand the court to condemn Vale for corruption.