India’s Fomento is investing $480 million in an iron ore project in Brazil

Fomento do Brasil Mineração, a subsidiary of the Indian company Fomento Resources, plans to invest $480 million in the Ferro Potiguar iron ore project in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte in the north of the country. This was reported by BNamericas.

In addition, the company is exploring the possibility of producing steel in the state using green hydrogen, said Renato Gomes, CEO of Fomento do Brasil, in late March.

According to the state government, the company’s investments in the project are expected to be completed by 2028. The company plans to extract 1.5 to 2 million tons of iron ore per year from Ferro Potiguar, with the mine’s operational life expected to be 12 years. If the schedule is met, construction work could begin as early as the first half of this year.

The Ferro Potiguar project is currently in the administrative approval phase, and the company is already investing in its logistics component. In February 2026, Fomento do Brasil Mineração won the auction for the concession of the NAT-01 terminal, located in the Port of Natal. This facility will be used primarily for the shipment of iron ore.

According to Adriano Andrade, Fomento do Brasil’s manager of health, safety, environment, and public relations, as quoted by Movimento Econômico, strategic factors such as ore quality and proximity to logistics infrastructure were taken into account when selecting Rio Grande do Norte, making the project competitive from a logistics standpoint.

In 2025, iron ore exports from Brazil reached a record high of 416.4 million tons, an increase of 7.1% year-over-year, according to data from the country’s Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services. This was the first time the annual figure exceeded 400 million tons, breaking the previous record of 390 million tons set in 2018.