Brazilian Dev't Bank approves $645 mln in financing for mining giant

RIO DE JANEIRO -- The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) on Monday approved 1.42 billion reais (645 million U.S. dollars) in financing for mining group Anglo American Brasil to boost nickel production. Anglo American is one of the largest mining conglomerates in the world, and prospects for ferronickel, ferroniobium and phosphates in Brazil.

The financing will be used in the construction of a processing center and the expansion of nickel production in a mine in Barro Alto in the midwestern state of Goias. The center, designed to be put into operation in 2010, will process 36,000 tons of nickel every year. The financing from the BNDES represents 46.4 percent of the total investment in the project, which stands at 3.1 billion reais (1.42 billion dollars).

The world's nickel production stands at around 1.5 million tons per year. Brazil is currently the seventh largest nickel producer in the world, with an annual production of 37,000 tons.