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    Photographer: Vale's Archive
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    Photographer: Vale's Archive

    Iron Ore Briquettes 

    We are committed to reducing mining’s impact on the environment and we are acting to help curb the increase in global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. 
    We are looking for solutions to reduce and offset all the carbon dioxide emitted in our operations and to help our steelmaking clients reduce their emissions too. 
    This challenge gave rise to a pioneering and innovative solution: iron ore briquettes, a new product that we have developed through almost 20 years of research. 
    These briquettes can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions in steel production by up to 10% compared to traditional processes, by eliminating the carbon-intensive sintering stage. This reduction is significant when you consider that the steel industry is responsible for around 8% of the world’s emissions. 

    What exactly are briquettes? 

    This is a new product developed by Vale over the course of almost 20 years. It is a mixture of iron ore and a binder solution, which holds the particles together and gives the product strength. It is one of the ingredients used in steel production, replacing sinter, pellets or lump ore in blast furnaces. 

    Want to know more? Watch the video below: 

    Clique aqui e interaja com briquete 3D

    Get to know the iron ore briquettes

    Main advantages of iron ore briquettes 

    Lower CO2 emissions
    Briquettes emit less carbon dioxide than traditional agglomeration processes (pelletizing and sintering). It can reduce CO2 emissions in the steelmaking chain by up to 10%.
    Lower gas emissions
    Iron ore briquettes reduce emissions gases such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide.
    Water
    They do not require the use of water to make them.
    Production process
    Reduce emissions of particulates and sand from mining tailings can be used in their production process. 

    From research to production 

    Announced in 2021, these iron ore briquettes began to be developed by us around 20 years ago at our Ferrous Metals Technology Center in Nova Lima, Minas Gerais. They are the latest in a long line of iron ore products we have offered over the course of our history, resulting from major investments in research and innovation. 
    Until the 1960s, our basic product was high-grade lump ore. As the supply of lump ore fell, the first pelletizing plants were set up in Brazil, allowing the use of fine ore (pellet feed). These plants remain important for the steelmaking chain. These briquettes now join our pellets in our portfolio of high-quality products. 
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    Onda
    A journey of almost two decades of research in Vale's laboratories in Minas Gerais took on a new chapter on December 12, 2023, when the company's president, Eduardo Bartolomeo, symbolically started up the world's first iron ore briquette plant at the Tubarão Unit in Vitória, Espírito Santo, Brazil. A second plant in Tubarão Unit is scheduled to open at the beginning of 2024. Together, they will have the capacity to produce 6 million tons per year - the result of an investment of US$ 256 million, which generated 2,300 jobs at the peak of construction.

    Photographer: Vale's Archive

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    Fotógrafo: Ricardo Teles

    “This is a historic moment for the steel industry. After many years of development in Brazil, we are offering an innovative product that will support our clients in the challenge of decarbonizing their operations, meeting society’s demands in the fight against climate change.” 

     

    Eduardo Bartolomeo, CEO, Vale 

    Find out more about our commitment to the environment 

    Here at Vale, innovation and sustainability go hand in hand. We are committed to reaching zero net carbon emissions by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement. This includes the goal of reducing carbon emissions for which we are responsible (scopes 1 and 2) by 33% by 2030 and also reducing net emissions related to the value chain, i.e., involving steelmaking clients and suppliers (scope 3), by 15% by 2035. 
    Today, 98% of Vale’s CO2 emissions come from its value chain. As we launch our briquettes on the market, they will be an ally in this decarbonization strategy. 

    We have already signed more than 50 agreements with clients to offer decarbonization solutions, encompassing 35% of the company’s scope 3 emissions. They include three agreements aimed at setting up “Mega Hubs” in Middle Eastern countries (Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman) to produce hot-briquetted iron (HBI), in order to supply the local and seaborne markets, leading to a significantly lower CO2 emissions. 

    At these Mega Hubs, we will build and operate iron ore concentration and briquetting plants, supplying the raw material for the HBI plants, which will be built and operated by investors and/or clients.  

    In this way, we continue to fight together against climate change impacts and in favor of increasingly sustainable mining.