Eike's former partners confirm billion-dollar investment in Minas Gerais.

Minas247 – Executives from Manabi Holding, a mining company created last year (and still in the pre-operational stage), met with technicians from the government of Antonio Anastasia (PSDB) in Belo Horizonte. On the agenda was the confirmation of a mega-investment in the central region of the state. Last year, the company acquired iron ore reserves in Morro do Pilar and Santa Maria do Itabirao. The company plans to invest US$4,1 billion in the sector.

Manabi was created last year by former executives from Vale and companies belonging to Eike Batista. Its ambitious plans in the sector are expected to be secured – at least that's Manabi's expectation – through a simultaneous initial public offering (IPO) in Brazil, the United States, and Canada. In addition to investments in Minas Gerais, the plans include a port terminal in Linhares (Espírito Santo).

Check out the article by the journalist. Marta Vieira, from the newspaper State of Minas

Executives from Manabi Holding – a mining company created last year by former executives from Vale and MMX and Canadian and American investors – met yesterday with Minas Gerais state government officials to discuss final details of an agreement supporting the company's planned multi-billion dollar investment in the state. In 2011, Manabi acquired iron ore reserves in Morro do Pilar and Santa Maria do Itabira, in the central region of Minas Gerais. According to an industry source following the negotiations with the state government, the project's budget is estimated at US$4,1 billion, of which approximately US$2,8 billion will be allocated to the mining complex in Minas Gerais.

The project is expected to be formalized in July through a letter of intent for the investment, to be signed at the Tiradentes Palace. On Monday, the mining company sent a statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) informing about agreements with the government of Espírito Santo for the construction of its own port terminal in the municipality of Linhares, which will primarily handle iron ore that Manabi will mine in the mining areas, as well as solid and liquid bulk cargo from third parties.

The company stated that it will not comment on the project due to CVM (Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission) regulations. To make its project viable in Brazil, the company submitted a request to the capital market regulatory body for analysis of a potential public offering of shares. The iron ore extraction and processing complex envisions an estimated production of 31 million tons annually starting in 2016, with 25 million tons at the Morro do Pilar mine and another 6 million tons at the Morro Escuro reserve in Santa Maria do Itabira.

The project is one of the largest in volume in the state, exceeding the 26,5 million tons of the Minas-Rio complex of the multinational Anglo American, currently under construction in the municipality of Conceição do Mato Dentro. Manabi began the environmental licensing process for its project in April and signed agreements with the mining company Vale to negotiate the transport of the ore via the Ferrovia Centro-Atlântica (FCA) railway to the coast of Espírito Santo.

The logistics plan studied by Manabi considers the construction of a pipeline of approximately 150 kilometers connecting the Morro do Pilar mine to Ipatinga, in the Vale do Aço region, from where the raw material would be transported by rail to Espírito Santo. The route towards the port of Linhares would be complemented by a 90km railway branch line.

All the ore from Morro do Pilar will be destined for export, while the Morro Escuro reserve will supply the domestic market. The project is expected to create 2 direct jobs in operations, with 1,5 in the mining complex. Despite the crisis in Europe and slower growth in China and the United States, Manabi, according to the source consulted by Estado de Minas, relies on good sales prospects, given the premium quality of its reserves. After processing, the iron ore will leave the mines with iron content of 68%, ideal for direct use in blast furnaces in the steel industry.