Brazilian mining company Vale said it has initiated the closure of the Onca Puma nickel mine in northeastern Brazil's Para state, as its operating license was revoked by a local regulator. At the same time, Vale claims that this decision will negatively affect the partners, suppliers and customers of the business.
The Environmental and Sustainable Development Committee of the State of Pará, which revoked Vale's license, accuses the company of not fulfilling its social obligations. In particular, he needed to build a clinic for local residents and lay a fiber optic cable.
Onca Puma accounts for about 7.5% of Vale's nickel production, according to Swiss bank Credit Suisse. Last year, the production volume in pure nickel amounted to about 16 thousand tons.
As commenters have noted, it's hard to say how long the downtime might last. Vale says it will take administrative and legal steps to return the license, but it could take a long time if the case is prosecuted.
According to the forecast of consulting company Wood Mackenzie, this year world nickel consumption will reach approximately 2.8 million tons, an increase of 17.3% compared to the previous year, and will reach 4.9 million tons by 2040. In addition, approximately 30% of global nickel production in 20 years will be used to make batteries for electric vehicles, while in 2020 the share of this sector in consumption was only 7%.
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