Vale Restarting Canadian Nickel Operations

Vale SA, based in Brazil, announced plans to restart nickel production at its operations in Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The decision to restart the operation was made despite union strikes at the facilities for the past eight months.

In September 2009, Vale partly resumed operations at its Sudbury, Ont. plant by focusing on copper production. The company targeted the operation of two exploration areas of high concentration to produce copper concentrate.

In January 2010, Vale started to produce nickel, with the resumption of operation at the company’s Copper Cliff smelter. The smelter is now operating at full capacity, consuming stocks for the production of nickel oxide nickel matte for the company’s refinery Clydach, Wales, which produces about 5,000 metric tons of nickel per month.

The company is increasing production in Sudbury to ensure the continuous supply of nickel ore to the smelter and expects to maintain full and continuous production by the end of second quarter. Meanwhile, the Clydach refinery is operating at a rate of 1,130 metric tons per month and expects to regain full capacity in April, producing 3,600 metric tons of nickel per month.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, Vale resumed production at the mine and processing plant Voisey's Bay - which supplies nickel concentrate the operations of Valley at Thompson, Manitoba and Sudbury, Ontario and copper concentrates to customers in Europe.

Voisey's Bay is operating at two-week intervals alternately, producing 1600 metric tons of nickel and 1,300 metric tons of copper per month