Vale has advanced scheduled maintenance at its two iron ore pelletizing plants in Sohar, Oman.
The shutdowns, originally planned for later in the first half of the year, were brought forward by several weeks as a precautionary measure amid regional instability and shipping disruptions in the Middle East, according to Bloomberg.
The duration of the maintenance has not been disclosed. However, Vale has maintained its 2026 global production guidance for iron ore pellets at 30-34 mln tons.
Vale’s Sohar facility, commissioned in 2011 with an investment of around USD 2 bln, has an annual capacity of 9 mln tons of direct reduction pellets. The site also includes a stockyard and distribution centre with handling capacity of up to 40 mln tons per year.
