The pelletizing plant, which has a nominal capacity of 7 million tonnes per year, is expected to produce 4-5Mt in 2021, according to its ramp-up and pellet feed availability.
Production at the Vargem Grande mining complex dropped by almost 40% in 2019 as Vale worked on the decommissioning projects for its upstream tailings dams.
Vale resumed in July 2019 a partial return of dry processing operations at the Grande complex, which is located near the town of Nova Lima in the state of Minas Gerais, following approval by the Agência Nacional de Mineração, or ANM.
"Going forward, we expect output from the complex to restore its full production capacity by 2023 as Vale resumes operations at some of its idled facilities," said commodities analysis consultancy Wood Mackenzie in May 2020.
