OREANDA-NEWS. November 30, 2011. Brazilian mining company Vale SA's New Caledonia Goro nickel plant is now "100% ready" to produce after suffering technical problems, Vale Chief Financial Officer Tito Martins said Monday.

"The plant will produce 22,000 tons a year," he said.

The plant, which suffered some structural issues in 2010, has recently been producing nickel hydroxide cake, which is an intermediary product, and is now progressing to production of nickel oxide, Martins said.

"We're already negotiating sales of nickel oxide," he said.

Investments at Goro are basically complete. In nickel the company will also invest USD 1.21 billion in 2012 at its Long Harbour refinery plant in Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, and USD 157 million at its Totten mine project at Sudbury, Canada, the company said early Monday in a statement.