OREANDA-NEWS. December 9, 2011. Brazilian mining company Vale SA (VALE, VALE5.BR), the world's biggest iron ore and nickel producer, needs to look for new mineral reserves to maintain growth and competitiveness, the company's chief financial officer said Wednesday.

"Mineral exploration is a priority," said Tito Martins, Vale CFO at a webcast event with analysts and investors in London. "Competition is tough for new reserves."

Some of Vale's longstanding mineral iron ore reserves in Brazil's Minas Gerais state are starting to be depleted and a similar situation is occurring in Canada with some nickel reserves the company acquired from Inco in 1997.

"Most of our new projects are in remote areas, for instance the Amazon forest and in Africa, and this means longer lead times and more difficult permitting," Martins said.

Vale recently pushed back the start-up date for its major 90 million-ton-a-year-capacity Serra Sul iron ore project in Carajas in the Brazilian Amazon to late 2016 as the company hasn't yet gained an initial permit for the USD 8 billion project.

Vale will spend about 11% of its USD 21.4 billion investment budget for 2012 on research and development, including the search for new mine reserves. The company wishes to diversify more into the areas of coal, copper and fertilizers, at the same time as strengthening its competitive position in iron ore and nickel, Martins said.

Most growth will be via the company's own projects, the CFO said. However, worthwhile acquisitions can't be ruled out, he said.

"We're not planning any major acquisition and won't do any crazy stuff," Martins said. "But we're always looking at opportunities."