The dams Área IX (Ouro Preto) and Capitão do Mato (Nova Lima), both in Minas Gerais, obtained a positive Declaration of Stability Condition (DCE) and had the emergency level closed this week, attesting to the safety of the structures. In all, 10 of the company's dams have closed the emergency level since the beginning of 2022.

The continuous improvement in the safety conditions of Vale's dams is the result of the measures that have been implemented, such as the new management system for the company's tailings disposal structures, based on the lessons learned from the Brumadinho dam collapse and on the best and strictest practices, as defined in the Global Industry Standard for Tailings Management (GISTM).

Area IX - The Area IX dam, located at the Fábrica mine in Ouro Preto (MG), underwent a geological-geotechnical investigation campaign and received complementary instrumentation for its monitoring, which confirmed the dam's stability conditions and made it possible to obtain the DCE and emergency level removal. The structure contains around 768,000 m³ of tailings and is one of the 30 upstream dams of the company that are part of Vale's De-Characterization Program. As of 2019, 40% of them have already been eliminated, which is equivalent to 12 structures. The Area IX dam's decharacterization is expected to be completed by 2024.

Capitão do Mato - The Capitão do Mato dam is located at the Capitão do Mato mine, in Nova Lima (MG), and contains approximately 1.8 million m³ of sediments. The right shoulder region (natural terrain) of the structure received slope stabilization works and drainage improvements, which resulted in satisfactory safety and operating conditions, with the consequent issue of the DCE. The structure was built by the single stage method and has been inactive since 2019.

The actions were duly communicated to the competent agencies, according to the guidelines established in the Emergency Action Plan for Mining Dams (PAEBM) of the structures and in the current legislation, including the National Mining Agency (ANM), the Public Ministry of Minas Gerais (MPMG), the State Environment Foundation (FEAM), the State Secretariat of Environment and Sustainable Development (SEMAD) and the technical audit that accompanies the work on the structures.

For more information on the management and performance of Vale's dams, visit the Control and Management of Dams page.