Vale Advances Salobo CPF Project One Year Ahead of Schedule with Wheaton Funding

summarizeSummary

Vale's Salobo CPF project advances to execution with start-up expected in 1H2028, one year early, adding 30,000 tonnes of annual copper production. Wheaton will fund US$40 million, and capex is reduced to US$215 million.

check_boxKey Events · Product Development and Regulatory · VALE

• Salobo CPF Project Advances to Execution

  Vale Base Metals is proceeding with the Coarse Particle Flotation project at Salobo, with start-up expected in 1H2028, approximately one year ahead of the original schedule.

• Production Capacity Expansion

  The project adds 6 million tonnes of annual ore processing capacity, bringing Salobo's total to 42 million tonnes per year, and is projected to increase annual copper production by up to 30,000 tonnes contained in concentrate, plus 15,000 ounces of gold by-product.

• Wheaton Funding Agreement

  Wheaton Precious Metals will provide US$40 million in two US$20 million milestone payments, replacing potential future streaming payments of up to US$8 million annually over 10 years.

• Reduced Capital Expenditure

  Capex estimate lowered to approximately US$215 million from US$225-275 million; after Wheaton's funding, Vale's net capital expenditure is expected to be approximately US$175 million.

auto_awesomeAnalysis · VALE · Energy & Transportation

The Salobo copper complex is moving to execution on its Coarse Particle Flotation project, pulling start-up forward to 1H2028 and adding 30,000 tonnes of annual copper production. Wheaton Precious Metals is contributing US$40 million in milestone payments, and the capex estimate has been trimmed to US$215 million, reducing Vale's net outlay to about US$175 million. This strengthens Vale's copper growth pipeline toward its 700,000-tonne 2035 target.