Vale shareholders near deal to pay Eletron $692m

26th September 2018 By: Reuters

SAO PAULO - Two major shareholders of Brazilian mining company Vale are likely to reach an agreement on Wednesday to pay 2.82-billion reais ($692-million) to Eletron to settle a dispute over Vale shares, according to securities filings by Bradespar SA and Litel Participações SA.

The payment by Brazilian holding companies Bradespar, one of the largest shareholders in Vale, and Litel, owned by pension funds, is expected to be formalized on Wednesday in court, according to both companies.

Litel and Bradespar were due to pay roughly four-billion reais ($981.2-million) judgment awarded by a Rio de Janeiro court in May to fellow shareholder Eletron, a holding company controlled by banker Daniel Dantas.

Each holding company will pay 1.4-billion reais ($343.4-million), according to the securities filings.

The dispute began 10 years ago, tied to an option that Elétron had to acquire Vale shares. Elétron was part of a group that bid in an auction to privatize Vale in 1997.