Steel Products Prices North America
February 10, 2019
Cliffs: Global Iron Ore Shortage, But No Problems at Home
Written by Sandy Williams
The recent mining disaster in Vale prompted a flurry of concern from analysts on the Cleveland Cliffs earnings call. Cleveland Cliff’s CEO Lourenco Goncalves said on Friday that the impact from the Vale mining disaster has yet to be properly quantified. Estimates of 11 million tons of capacity loss are likely to be double that, he said.
Brazil domestic mills will likely receive first consideration by Vale, leaving international markets short for iron ore shipments. Vale will not only have a shortage of iron ore but a shortage of DRI grade pellets that some countries rely on, such as the Middle East, he said. It is possible that some countries could turn to lower quality ore and sinter, but environmental regulations may make such measures prohibitive.
