OREANDA-NEWS. October 27, 2011. Vale S.A. (Vale) operations had a robust performance in 3Q11, as shown by the output increase of the majority of its products, and the recording of all-time high volumes for iron ore, pellets, copper and thermal coal.

Improvement in operational performance of the existing assets and the ramp-up to name plate capacity of new projects such as Additional 20Mtpy, Oman, Onca Puma and Tres Valles were the main drivers for the good results achieved.

Iron ore output reached 87.9 Mt, being the best quarterly mark ever, led by the Carajas record of 30.9 Mt. Over the last twelve-month period ended on September 30, 2011, our iron ore production reached 319.9 Mt in line with the target for 2011.

Pellet production continued achieving new records, reaching 14.1 Mt, primarily due to the successful ramp-up of the first plant of the Oman operations. Oman I produced 4.6 Mt, on an annualized basis, already reaching full capacity.

Nickel production had its best third quarter since 2008, with an output of 58,000 metric tons. Furnace #2 of the Copper Cliff smelter, in Sudbury, resumed operations, thus contributing to increase production. On the other hand, the performance of Canadian assets was affected by the regular annual

maintenance stoppage of Thompson. Our copper output was 84,300 metric tons, an all- time high quarterly figure, due to across-the- board performance improvement - Sossego, Sudbury, Thompson and Voisey's Bay - and the ramp-up of Tres Valles, our Chilean operation.

Vale New Caledonia (VNC) is retaining nickel hydroxide cake to be used in testing the retrofitting of the refinery columns, part of the operational process to produce nickel oxide. After the issues that emerged in the final stage of the commissioning of VNC operations last year, the columns were redesigned by the equipment supplier, allowing the full operation to be tested during 4Q11.

Moatize, a world-class asset, is being commissioned. It is our first greenfield coal project and also the first project to be delivered by Vale in Africa. The first shipment of a trial cargo utilizing the Linha do Sena railroad and the port of Beira (Mozambique) took place in September.

Production

000' metric tons

9M11

9M10

 

%Change

 

 

 

 

Iron orea

239,687

227,533

 

5.3%

Pelletsa

39,886

36,783

 

8.4%

Manganese ore

1,799

1,364

 

31.9%

Ferroalloy

330

335

 

-1.5%

Coal

4,574

5,146

 

-11.1%

Nickel

173

114

 

51.8%

Copper

217

132

 

64,8%

Potash

445

493

 

-9.7%

Phosphate rock

9,903

5,689

 

74.1%

a Including Samarco's attributable production.