BHP restarts operations at Samarco
2020-12-24 12:01:25 [Print]
BHP Group Ltd
Independent tests had been carried out on Samarco's preparations for a safe restart and operations are expected initially to produce about 8 million tonnes of iron ore pellets per annum, the miner said.
In the 2015 incident, a mining waste dam burst at Samarco's site in the town of Mariana, releasing a torrent of sludge that killed 19 people and leading to the suspension of operations and multiple legal cases against the miners. The collapse is considered Brazil's worst-ever environmental disaster, contaminating a river for hundreds of miles to the ocean.
Brazilian federal prosecutors filed a lawsuit in October contesting the miners' compensation package for victims, arguing that the package is far too low.
. said on Thursday it had met licensing requirements to restart operations and had begun iron ore pellet production at its Samarco joint venture with Brazil's Vale SA, five years after a deadly dam disaster.
Independent tests had been carried out on Samarco's preparations for a safe restart and operations are expected initially to produce about 8 million tonnes of iron ore pellets per annum, the miner said.
In the 2015 incident, a mining waste dam burst at Samarco's site in the town of Mariana, releasing a torrent of sludge that killed 19 people and leading to the suspension of operations and multiple legal cases against the miners. The collapse is considered Brazil's worst-ever environmental disaster, contaminating a river for hundreds of miles to the ocean.
Brazilian federal prosecutors filed a lawsuit in October contesting the miners' compensation package for victims, arguing that the package is far too low.