MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd March, 2019) The CEO of Brazilian mining company Vale, Fabio Schvartsman, and a number of other executives have been suspended in the wake of the deadly collapse of Vale's dam in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, the corporation said in a statement.
According to the statement, Vale's board of directors received from the Federal Public Prosecution Office and the Public Prosecution Office of the state of Minas Gerais recommendations on the dismissal of a number of its executives. Following it, the board of directors held meetings on Friday and Saturday.
"During these discussions, the Board received from the executives Fábio Schvartsman (CEO), Gerd Peter Poppinga (Executive Director of Ferrous and Coal), Lucio Flavio Gallon Cavalli (Head of Planning and Development of Ferrous and Coal) and Silmar Magalhães Silva (Head of Operations of the Southeast Corridor), requests for temporary removal from office, which were immediately accepted," the statement said on Saturday, adding that Eduardo de Salles Bartolomeo was appointed as acting CEO.
The company also reiterated its readiness "to seek a transparent and productive relationship with the Brazilian authorities in order to clarify the facts, to properly remediate the damages and to maintain the company's integrity."
A tailings dam at Vale's Corrego do Feijao mine in the state's Brumadinho municipality collapsed on January 25, triggering heavy mud floods. According to the latest data, the death toll reached 183 people, with at least 122 still missing.
