Name of the Project
Carajás S11D (S11D) iron-ore project.
Location
Pará, Brazil.
Client
Vale.
Project Description
S11D is named after its location – orebody S11, Block D. The mining potential of orebody S11 is ten-billion tons of iron-ore and that of Block D 2.78-billion tons of iron-ore.
It is the largest project in the history of Vale and the iron-ore industry.
The project has a nominal capacity of 90-million tonnes a year of iron-ore, with proven and probable reserves of 4.24-billion tonnes, an average ferrous content of 66.7%, low impurities and an estimated cash cost (mine, plant, railway and port after royalties) of $15.00/t.
S11D will increase Vale’s logistics capacity to 230-million tonnes a year and involves the construction of a rail spur, new railway sections with dual tracks, rail terminals and onshore and offshore investments.
In line with Vale’s long-term objective of sustainable value creation, it has developed technological solutions focused on environmental protection, with more efficient use of natural resources and the reduction of pollutants emission.
The truckless mining concept will result in replacing the off-road trucks with excavators and mobile crushers, which will extract the iron-ore and feed the conveyor belts that will transport it to the beneficiation plant.
Processing iron-ore using its natural moisture (dry process) will further mitigate the environmental impacts. This technique eliminates the generation of tailings using the maximum amount of ore, since the finest feeds, which would be lost in the conventional process, are in the final product.
Once the S11D mine and plant are operating, water consumption will decrease by 93% and fuel consumption by 77%, allowing for a 50% reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions, compared with using conventional methods. The dry process will also reduce electricity consumption and eliminate the need for a tailings dam, minimising the interference in native environments.
Jobs to be Created
Not stated.
Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.
Value
$14.4-billion.
Duration
S11D is expected to start up in the second half of 2016 and deliver full capacity production in 2018.
The start ups for CLN S11D will occur from the first half of 2015 to the second half of 2018.
The project is expected to reach full production by 2018, enough to fill 225 Valemax ships – the largest cargo carriers in the world.
Latest Developments
Vale loaded its first 26 500 t of commercial ore produced at its S11D project, at the Ponta de Madeira docks on January 13. The three vessels used ranged between 73 000 t and 380 000 t
Surplus vessel capacity was filled with high-grade iron-ore fines from other mines in its northern operations.
The high quality of the ore extracted from S11D will give Vale flexibility to blend it in ports in Malaysia, China and Oman, with product produced in the so-called south and south-east systems, in Minas Gerais, improving the pricing of the final product, as well as extending the life of the mines in that state.
S11D is expected to reach full output by 2018. The S11D mine will boost Vale’s current 109-million-tonne capacity to 230-million tonnes a year, while having a smaller environmental footprint than existing operations.
The S11D project does not include tailings dams owing to a combination of the high-quality ore and state-of-the-art beneficiation technology. The beneficiation process does not need water, making environment-friendly dry-stacking tailings disposal methods feasible.
The project has adopted other technologies, such as the implementation of a truckless system, in which ore is mined without the need to use "off-road trucks", which reduces greenhouse-gas emissions and particulate matter.
Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.
On Budget and on Time?
Yes.
Contact Details for Project Information
Vale, Roberto Castello Branco, tel +55 21 3814 4540 or email Roberto.castello.branco@vale.com.