Vale is boosting its investment in biodiesel for use in its machinery and trains. Vale is one of the world’s largest mining companies. The firm acquired palm oil producer Biopalma, for a consideration of $173.5 million, for the remaining 70 per cent of the company’s stock. The investment is part of Vale SA’s strategy that seeks to run more of its Brazil operations on biodiesel.

By 2014, Vale expects to produce 160,000 tons per year from locally produced palm oil, and 500,000 tons by 2019. Vale has identified 31.8 million hectares where it could expand its oil palm plantations to help move the country away from its biodiesel reliance on soy. In a statement, Vale said Biopalma will start producing the oil this year and will be generating 500,000 tons of it in 2019.

Vale will turn the oil into biodiesel and run its fleet of trains and other machinery on a 20 percent blend of the fuel with regular diesel, according to the statement. In April 2009, both companies formed a consortium to produce palm oil. Biopalma owns six palm oil plantations covering 18,400 hectares (45,467 acres) in the northern Amazon forest state of Para, Vale said. By 2013, there will be 60,000 hectares of plantations, according to the statement.

Vale is a diversified mining multinational corporation and one of the largest logistics operators in Brazil. In addition to being the second-largest mining company in the world, Vale is also the largest producer of iron ore pellets, and second largest of nickel. Vale also produces manganese, ferroalloys, copper, bauxite, potash, kaolin, alumina and aluminum. In the electric energy sector, the company participates in consortia and currently operates nine hydroelectric plants. However, Mining is Vale’s core business.

As part of Vale's strategy, which holds sustainability as a core operating principle, Biopalma will contribute to preserving and restoring extensive areas of habitat. Biopalma currently employs around 3,200 people, including employees and contractors. In addition, a family farming program has been designed to cover 2,000 families from the region, who will grow palm trees and other crops on their land.

The company will monitor the practices used by these farmers and has guaranteed to purchase their output. The Small Producer project was launched in February 2010 and now involves 24 families, who are growing palm trees on 240 hectares. An additional one hundred families will join the project in 2011, each one planting ten hectares of palm trees.

4 Feb 2011.