Brazilian mining giant Vale plans to reduce its 50% stake in the Companhia Siderúrgica do Pecém (CSP) steel plant project, currently being built in northeastern Ceará state, CFO Luciano Siani said during a meeting of institutional investors in Rio de Janeiro.
“We are excited about this mill because of the growing demand for steel in the northeast of Brazil,” Siani said. “But our goal is not to be a steelmaker.”
Vale plans to spend more than USD 400M on the project in 2013, according to the report.
South Korean Dongkuk has a 30% stake in CSP and compatriot steelmaker Posco owns the remainder.
The steel mill is scheduled to begin operating in 2014.
Vale’s global steel director Aristides Corbellini resigned from his duties as part of a downsizing process in the miner’s steel production division earlier in January.
