Japanese bank to provide a loan to Vale to secure iron ore supplies to the country

The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) has agreed to provide a loan of up to $480 million to Brazilian mining company Vale to help Japanese companies secure pellets and iron ore concentrate. This is stated on the website of the financial institution.

The loan is co-financed with private financial institutions, bringing the total amount to $700 million. The funds are intended to support domestic companies to achieve stable long-term imports of iron ore from Vale.

JBIC also expects to strengthen its relationship with global iron ore, nickel and copper supplier Vale as a critical partner in Japan’s resource strategy.

«Vale has established favorable and long-standing business relationships with Japanese companies as a world-leading supplier of mineral resources, such as iron, nickel, and copper. It is also expected to expand and diversify opportunities to cooperate with Japanese companies, including collaborative projects in Brazil and third countries,» JBIC said in a statement.

At the end of last year, Vale opened the world’s first iron ore briquette plant at Tubarão in Brazil. More than 30 global customers have already expressed interest in the product. A second plant will be commissioned in 2024. The total production capacity of the two facilities will be 6 million tons of briquettes per year, with investments of $256 million.

As GMK Center reported earlier, Vale announced that in 2024 it expects to start building mega-hubs in the Middle East to produce low-carbon iron ore products. The first of them will start operating in 2027.