Morro da Mina

Overview

 Moro da MIna is a manganese mining operation located in the state of Minas Gerais of Brazil.

The open pit mine started producing in 1902, and by 1995 it has yielded 8.6 million tons of oxide ore and 3.4 million tons of manganese silicate-protore.

Morro da Mina’s projected exhaustion date is 2045.

Vale S.A. is the owner of the mine and uses the manganese for the production of steel.

In 2011, the mine produced 100,000 tonnes of manganese.

Location

The property is located close to Conselheiro Lafaiete city, state of Minas Gerais, in Brazil. It belongs to the Minas Gerais Complex - Manganese of Vale S.A.

The Conselheiro Lafaiete city is inhabited by over 116,000 people.

The Minas Gerais state is located in the southeast of the country. he state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte, is a major urban and finance center in Latin America, and stands as the third largest urban aglomeration in Brazil. The state is is a major producer of milk, coffee and other agricultural commodities, as well as minerals.

Geology & Mineralization

It is a sedimentary rock originally belonging to a greenstone sequence (Greenstone Belt1) suffered the type metamorphism dynamic or cataclastic. The depositional setting is interpreted as the original a bowl of the ocean floor, evolved from a divergent margin and supposed to volcanogenic contribution.The initial geometry of the ore bodies was controlled by processes sedimentary, mainly flows and chemical sedimentation turbidites (manganese carbonate, chert) concentrations accompanied by organic (carbon - graphite). 

The manganese minerals are the rhodochrosite (manganese carbonate) spessartine (silicate). The gangue minerals were quartz, huntite, annite, phlogopite, clinochlore and rutile. It was observed that the freedom degree of manganese minerals from gangue minerals were above 87% for all size range that was analyzed. The ore at Morro da Mina is considered to be low-grade.

The mine is located in Minas Gerais, and produces granules for metallurgical use, and as well as fines for use in the chemical industry. All its production is integrated with the ferro-alloy production units.

As of Decenber 2011, proven and probable reserves stood at 14.8 million tonnes at 25.1% manganese.

Mining & Operation

The mine is open cast, using ramps for the transport of ore and tailings.

The mine has been in operation since 1902 and has ISO 14001 certification.

Morro da Mina has a nominal capacity of 300,000 t. The mine commenced operations in 1902. Reserves, as of Dec31/08, are projected to be exhaused in 2045.

Processing

The processing plant carries out the stages of comminution, screening, classification and de-watering.

Recovery rate is 88%. The processed manganese ore presents a good lump/fines ratio.

Vale uses the manganese for the production of steel. Vale Manganes has four plants in Brazil: Santa Rita, Barbacena and Ouro Preto in the state of Minas Gerais and Simoes Filho in the state of Bahia. In 2011, Vale Manganes produced 204 kt of ferroalloys.

Environment & Community

 N/A