Qatari state run holding firm, Industries Qatari, reported Monday that its subsidiary, Qatari Steel Company had entered an agreement with Brazil’s Samarco Mineracao for the supply of iron ore pellets. The Brazilian firm is a manufacturer of iron ore pellets and the contract will see it supply them to the Qatari firm for a period of six years.

The Qatari firm said the contract was a long term and will be valid for the agreed six years under the terms. Iron ore pellets are the primary material utilized by Qatari Steel for the production of direct reduced iron and hot briquetted iron. However, no details were given over the financial figures agreed upon in the terms.

Samarco Mineracao is controlled by Vale and BHP Billiton. Industries Qatar is one of the Gulf State’s most dynamic and progressive firms. Qatar Industries employs about 3,000 individuals and has offices around the world and is as well one of Qatar’s biggest companies.

Industries Qatar’s operations span from the metal industry to petrochemicals and its products are sold in markets as diverse as Australia, India and the United States of America. The group operates a number of world-class production facilities in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Industries Qatar is 70% owned by state-run Qatar Petroleum and the rest is held by individual and corporate shareholders.

Besides Qatar Steel, Industries Qatar’s subsidiaries and joint ventures include Qatofin, Qatar Petrochemical Co, Qatar Fuel Additives Co, and Qatar Fertiliser Co. On its part though, Brazilian company Samarco Mineração engages in iron ore and pellet exportation, selling 100% of its products in more than 15 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Middle East and the Americas. The company is equally owned by Companhia Vale do Rio Doce and BHP Billiton.

The deal between Qatar Steel Company (QSC) and Brazil-based iron ore pellet producer Samarco Mineracao S.A. will now see the Brazilian firm supply iron ore pellets in Doha. The contract was signed by Nasser Hamad Al-Thani, director and general manager of Qatar Steel, and José Tadeu de Moraes, Chief Executive Officer of Samarco. Samarco launched its third Pellet Plant on April. The complex is located in Ponta Ubu, in the city of Anchieta, State of Espírito Santo, and in the city of Mariana in the State of Minas Gerais, with a new 400 km pipeline between both plants.