Vale announces its 3rd quarter production and sales

Vale's 3rd quarter was marked by related production improvement plans and increased iron ore and coal production following better weather conditions. Sharp decline in iron ore prices (US$37/dmt 62% Fe index vs. 2Q21) review of production and sales of high silica iron ore products, North Atlantic Base Metal activities after signing of a new five-year collective agreement in Sudbury It is getting better as the case of a gradual restart and the safe return of all 39 workers at the Totten mine has been resolved.

Vale's fine iron ore production totaled 89.4 million tons in 3Q21, up 18.1% from 2Q21 as a result of the following.

The improvements made are as follows:

Seasonal improvement of weather conditions in the Northern System, increasing Serra Norte and S11D performance.

Vargem Grande increases production with dry processing while adjusting the flowchart of one of its wet processing plants.

Performance improvement related to Itabira's better mine run (ROM) availability.

Third-party purchasing is higher (5.8% of total production in 21Q21 and 6.2% in 2Q21), although proportionally lower than in the previous quarter.

Factory reached full capacity of 6 million tons/year after the resumption of the enrichment process in 2Q21.

During the 2021 Analyst and Investor Tour on September 9, Vale presented an updated view of its production capacity restart plan and launched new portfolio solutions for the carbonless steelmaking industry.

Vale remains committed to the capacity restart schedule, which is also linked to removing restrictions and optimizing costs. In 3Q21, operations of the Maravilhas III dam at the Vargem Grande complex began following the issuance of a positive Statement of Stability (DCE). As an additional step to the restart plan, Vale began commissioning the long-distance conveyor belt segment near the Vargem Grande dam in October and continued after several tests confirming that there was no increased risk to the structure. At the end of the commissioning, the production capacity of the Vargem Grande plant is expected to increase by 6 million tons per year.

Vale's pellet production totaled 8.3 million tons in 3Q21, in line with 2Q21, limited by pellet feed availability in Itabira and Brucutu.