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Mr. Carlos Cleber Guimarães Júnior and Ms. Carla de Laci França Guimarães & Vale S.A.
Lead NCPBrazil
Supporting NCP(s)
DescriptionSpecific instance alleging a non-observance of the OECD Guidelines.
Theme(s)General policies, Environment, Disclosure, Human rights
Date23 Jan 2020
Host country(ies)Brazil
SourceIndividuals
Industry sectorMining and quarrying
StatusConcluded
Summary

Read the Final Statement published 26 October 2021: Portuguese

On 23 January 2020, two individuals submitted a specific instance to the Brazilian NCP, alleging that Vale S.A. a company active in the mining and extractives sector, had failed to observe the OECD Guidelines as a result of the Brumadinho dam accident that took place on 25 January 2019.

The submitters are owners of rural land, in the municipality of Brumadinho, Minas Gerais, that is leased, utilised for fruit and vegetable production, and used for real estate business activities. According to the submitters, the collapse of the dam has caused material losses as a result of the following:

  • Interruption of negotiations for a real estate project.
  • Decreased flow of vehicles thereby making access to the property more difficult.
  • Reduction in the ability to use land for economic activity due to the release of mud in the Paraopeba river.

On 13 April 2020, the NCP accepted the specific instance for further examination following an initial assessment. The NCP offered its good offices to the parties but the company did not accept.

On 26 October 2021, the NCP published the final statement and issued the following recommendations for the company:

  • Draw up and disseminate a report on the scope and effectiveness of remedial measures adopted by the company at individual, collective and social levels;
  • Disclose the list of national and international commitments undertaken by Vale that, in some way, have implications for the substance of the specific instance, and the performance of the company in relation to those commitments;
  • Develop and disseminate a report on the compliance with the OECD Guidelines in the general framework of the company’s corporate governance actions.

On 26 April 2022, the NCP received a response from Vale S.A. regarding the recommendations issued during the final statement. After reviewing the information, the decision was made not to issue a follow up report as the response was considered to sufficiently address the recommendations. The specific instance procedure was formally closed on 23 June 2022.