Brazil to offer more mining projects to private sector

Amid positive sentiment among investors, the Brazilian government decided to auction more mining assets under its PPI concessions and privatization program.

President Jair Bolsonaro signed a decree on Thursday to offer three more projects to the private sector: Gipsita do Rio Cupari (gypsum) and Calcário de Aveiro (limestone) in northern state Pará, and Diamante de Santo Inácio (diamond) in the northeast state of Bahia.

Gipsita has 534Mt of gypsum, while Calcário de Aveiro has 590Mt of limestone, according to the PPI. 

Diamante de Santo Inácio has 122Mt of mineralized material containing 1.8mn carats of diamonds, the agency said in a release.

The auctions for the three assets are expected to be held this year.

Earlier in the week, PPI launched a public consultation on plans to offer mining rights to a kaolin deposit in Pará. Located in the Capim river area, the project’s capex is put at 2bn reais (US$355mn), according to the PPI. The auction is planned for October.

In addition, an auction for mining rights to the Miriri phosphate project and the Cobre de Bom Jardim de Goiás copper deposit is due to be held June 10. 

Miriri is in the northeastern states of Pernambuco and Paraíba and contains an estimated 115Mt grading 4.19% phosphate and would require investment of 190mn reais.

Cobre de Bom Jardim de Goiás, in Goiás state, contains an estimated 12.2Mt grading 0.21% copper and 0.025ppm cobalt. The government estimates capex at US$19.5mn and opex at US$42.7mn.