Court approves insolvency plan for BHP and Vale-owned Samarco

The news: A court in Brazil has approved an insolvency plan for troubled iron ore miner Samarco, which is jointly owned by BHP and Brazil’s Vale.

The numbers: Under the terms of the judicial reorganisation plan, Samarco’s funding of the Renova Foundation — which is managing reparations related to the Fundao dam collapse — will be capped at USD1 billion ($1.55 billion) from 2024 to 2030. During this period, BHP and Vale will be required to provide funding to Renova if the obligations exceeds the USD1 billion cap.

The context: The ratification comes after Samarco filed for the judicial reorganisation in April 2021 to stave off action from financial creditors. The joint venture is separately facing claims in relation to the collapse of the Samarco-owned Fundao dam in 2015, which killed 19 people and swept more than 40 million cubic metres of mud and mining waste into the Doce river, obliterating villages in its path.