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    Photo: Vale's Archive
    com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.DateUtil_IW@24fbec3a
    Photo: Vale's Archive

    Vale's Production and Sales report for 3Q24 is now available.  

    The 3Q24 report was released this Tuesday, October 15th. Below are the key highlights and the full report.  
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    Fotógrafo: Ricardo Teles

    Highlights

    • Vale’s Q3 performance was marked by record iron ore output since 4Q18 and an increase in the production guidance for 2024. In copper, ore processed at Salobo 1 & 2 increased by 30% y/y supported by stronger mill performance. In nickel, performance of the Sudbury mines drove a 20% increase in mill throughput y/y.  
       
    • Iron ore production reached 91.0 Mt, 4.7 Mt (+5%) higher y/y, driven by improved performance at S11D, Itabira and Brucutu. As previously announced, Vale has revised its production guidance upward to 323-330 Mt (from 310-320 Mt), reflecting continued improvements on operational stability and asset reliability. Pellets production totaled 10.4 Mt, 1.2 Mt (+13%) higher y/y. Iron ore sales were 81.8 Mt, up 1.3 Mt (+2%) y/y.  
       
    • Copper production totaled 85.9 kt, 4.3 kt (+5%) higher y/y, reflecting stronger performance across all operations, which was partially offset by the impact of an incident in a conveyor belt at the Salobo 3 plant in June.  
       
    • Nickel production totaled 47.1 kt, 5.0 kt (+12%) higher y/y, mainly reflecting stronger asset performance in Sudbury and the continued ramp-up of Voisey’s Bay underground mines. 

    Check out the results of our key products below

    • Northern System: production increased by 1.9 Mt y/y, driven by S11D’s robust performance at 22.1 Mt (+2.7 Mt y/y), making this the seventh quarter of y/y production improvements. Serra Norte’s output was slightly lower y/y (-0.5 Mt y/y), in line with the production plan. Shipments from the Ponta da Madeira port set a quarterly record since 2021, totaling 50.6 Mt, reflecting enhanced operational stability. 
       
    • Southeastern System: production increased by 3.6 Mt y/y, driven by (i) enhanced performance at the Conceição 1 & 2 plants in Itabira, as a result of reduced maintenance downtime following the concentration of activities in the first semester, during the rainy season, and (ii) higher output at Brucutu, attributed to the resumption of three wet processing lines last year and the commissioning of a fourth line in September this year, with the site achieving its highest quarterly production since 2019. 
       
    • Southern System: production was 0.9 Mt lower y/y, primarily due to (i) lower third-party purchases and (ii) reduced high-silica products output at the Vargem Grande complex due to market conditions. These effects were partially offset by increased production at Viga, following maintenance works in the 3Q23. In September, the commissioning of wet processing operations in the Vargem Grande 1 Project started. This will allow the Vargem Grande complex to resume approximately 15 Mtpa of iron ore production and improve the average quality by approximately 2% of contained iron. 
       
    • Pellets: production was 1.2 Mt higher y/y, achieving its highest quarterly production since 2018, driven by higher pellet feed availability from the Brucutu and Itabira mines, increasing pellet production at the Tubarão site. 
       
    • Iron ore sales were 1.3 Mt higher y/y, totaling 81.8 Mt, supported by 18% higher pellet sales. Considering the higher pellet production and healthy demand in the quarter, pellet sales increased to 10.1 Mt (+18% y/y), supporting overall iron ore sales, which totaled 81.8 Mt (+2% y/y). The 5.5 Mt inventory build-up was mainly due to cargos in transit along the supply chain as production seasonally increased in Q3. These inventories will be converted into sales in Q4. 
       
    • The all-in premium improved by US$ 1.8/t q/q, totaling US$ 1.7/t¹, driven by higher average quality of the product portfolio. This improvement is a result of the increased availability of high-quality products, mainly from the Northern System, allowing for higher BRBF sales and the proactive decision to reduce direct sales of high-silica products, due to market conditions. 
       
    • The average realized iron ore fines price was US$ 90.6/t, US$ 7.6/t lower q/q despite iron ore reference prices having decreased by US$ 12.0/t in the period. The lower decline vs. the reference price is attributed to an enhanced product portfolio and the positive eĊect from provisional pricing adjustments, given higher-than-average forward prices in the last day of the quarter. The average realized iron ore pellet price was US$ 148.2/t, US$ 9.0/t lower q/q, due to lower iron ore prices. 

    ​​​​​​​¹ Iron ore fines premium of US$ -1.9/t and the weighted average contribution of the pellet business of US$ 3.6/t. 

    • Salobo: copper production decreased by 3.0 kt y/y, mainly reflecting the impact of the conveyor belt fire that occurred at the Salobo 3 plant and lower feed grades, as per plan. Salobo 1&2 plants continue to perform well, reporting a 30% increase in ore processed y/y. 
       
    • Sossego: copper production increased by 2.6 kt y/y, mainly because of higher mined volumes and higher feed grade to the mill, as per the plan. Sequentially, production increased by 4.3 kt as the mine’s operational license was reestablished, enabling the processing of higher-feed grades from mined material. 
       
    • Canada: copper production increased by 4.7 kt y/y, mainly reflecting improved mining performance in Sudbury and shorter mine and mill maintenance periods y/y. Also, production was positively impacted by the ramp-up of VBME and higher copper precipitates output in Thompson. 
       
    • Payable copper sales² totaled 75.2 kt in the quarter, up 1.4 kt y/y, mainly reflecting higher production. Sales in the quarter were lower than production, mainly due to in-transit volumes and Vale Base Metals’ commercial strategy. 
       
    • The average copper realized price was US$ 9,016/t, 2.0% lower q/q, mainly due to lower LME reference prices. 

    ²Sales volumes are lower than production volumes due to payable copper vs. contained copper: part of the copper contained in the concentrates is lost in the smelting and refining process, hence payable quantities of copper are approximately 3.5% lower than contained volumes. 

    • Sudbury-sourced ore: finished nickel production increased by 5.6 kt y/y, resulting from the improved performance of the mine-mill-smelter-refinery flowsheet. Sudbury mines and mill performed well, with a 20% increase in ore production and mill throughput y/y. On a sequential basis, production increased by 9.2 kt as smelter and refinery operations resumed after biennial maintenance. 
       
    • Thompson-sourced ore: finished nickel production was 1.1 kt higher y/y, mainly because of the higher availability of the Long Harbour refinery. 
       
    • Voisey’s Bay-sourced ore: finished nickel production increased by 2.2 kt y/y, driven by the availability of Voisey’s Bay-sourced feed at Long Harbour, as higher nickel grade from underground mines continued to ramp-up, as well as higher availability of the Long Harbour refinery. 
       
    • Onça Puma: nickel production increased by 0.4 kt y/y, as in 3Q23 the furnace was operating at a lower rate in preparation for the furnace rebuild. The operation has been running steadily since the conclusion of the furnace rebuild. The plant has experienced a power disruption after a severe windstorm has damaged the local utility company’s transmission line on October 5th. 
       
    • External feed: finished nickel production from external feed was 19.3 kt in the quarter. Third-party feed decreased by 2.5 kt y/y, as planned. PTVI-sourced production decreased by 1.9 kt y/y, mainly reflecting the deconsolidation³ of PTVI, partially offset by higher nickel production at the Matsusaka refinery. 
       
    • Nickel sales totaled 40.7 kt, 1.5 kt higher y/y, driven by higher production. In the quarter, nickel sales were 6.4 kt lower than production due to an inventory build-up, as well as due to Vale Base Metals’ sales strategy. 
       
    • The average nickel realized price was US$ 17,012/t, down 9% q/q, due to lower LME reference prices, partially offset by higher realized premiums. 
    ³Starting from 3Q24, PTVI sourced production is reported as “External feed” and reflects solely the 80%-offtake attributable to Vale Base Metals processed at downstream facilities. Before, PTVI production was 100% consolidated by Vale. 

    Vale's Performance in 3Q24

    The 3Q24 financial statements will be released on October 24th. Following the release, our executives will host, on October 25th, a webcast (real-time audio teleconference) with analysts and investors to discuss 3Q24 earnings.