Select Language:
Companhia Vale do Reio Doce (CVRD) is one of the largest mining companies in the world. Headquartered in Brazil, they have mining operations in 30 countries around the world. They are the world’s largest producers of iron ore, iron pellets, and nickel, and they are the largest producer of manganese in Brazil.
Despite their size and reach, Vale is committed to becoming one of the safest and most reliable mining companies in the world, always acting with due regard to the basic principle that life matters most. They are equally committed to becoming a sustainable operator, as well as a driver of local development and global sustainability. Through sustainability, they strive to respect and care for the planet on which we live.
To back those words up, Vale has invested nearly $17.8 billion to expand their operations of dry or natural moisture processing of iron ore in Brazil. Over the next five years, they estimate they will invest another $3.1 billion to similar processing facilities to achieve a dry production goal of 70%. Out of the 17 processing stations they currently have, 11 already use dry processing. The remaining eight will be converted by 2023.
Why are they so dedicated to dry iron ore processing? The transition is expected to reduce their water consumption by 93% and it will diminish the need for tailing ponds. A reduction in the need for fresh water sources will help to significantly drop their iron ore processing costs and it will be appreciably beneficial to the environment. Tailing pond dams can fail, spreading potentially toxic materials into the nearby environment and water tables, which is not only detrimental to the environment, it is a source of bad publicity and liability.
These are the principles that ST Equipment & Technology have been preaching for years. Our electrostatic separator uses a dry process to achieve all of the benefits mentioned above. In addition, the process is able to separate iron ore down to sizes below 10 microns, allowing our clients to get more ore from their current mining operations while reducing the overall waste streams.
When your operations are ready to follow the example set by Vale in its mining and processing operations, we’d love to discuss with you how our high-capacity, high-speed proprietary separator can vault your production—and environmental friendliness—to new levels.
