Natural gas will be used from 2011 as a fuel substitute for a part of the diesel oil on the entire locomotive fleet of the Vitoria-Minas railroad, owned by Vale. The company launched the mix design of clean fuel to diesel in February and already considers the possible replacement by tests performed in the Control Center Operation of the railway in Espirito Santo. The decision was announced Wednesday by Eduardo Bartolomeo, CEO of Logistics, Project Management and Sustainability of mining. Vale also decided to study the pinhao-manso of Minas Gerais as raw material to include biodiesel in the energy matrix of its activities.
The 350 machines in Vitoria Mines railroad oozing iron ore exploited by Vale in the state, will be converted within a year and a half to use natural gas. On a project launched this year, the fuel that will enter in the composition that feeds the engines of up to 50% to 70%. With the new mixture, will no longer be issued 73 000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year. “We won the barrier to use of natural gas, but further tests will continue until the next year. These are investments that require a lot of money and technology”, said Bartolomeo.
In the current stage of testing with natural gas, railway technicians are analyzing the adaptation of different types of motor fuel. According to preliminary information, Vale will prevent the emission of carbon dioxide equivalent at levels above what the company stopped issuing last year with a blend of biodiesel in machines, off-highway trucks and power generation. The company launched its project to produce biodiesel in 2007. Responsible for 40% of all rail freight transported in the country, the Vitoria-Minas carries iron ore, agricultural products, fertilizers, pulp, containers, fuel and steel products.
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From the current plans of the mining company, it has not yet come to its own production of gas, but Vale is already investing in fuel. The company is a partner of Petrobras, the Hispano-Argentine oil company Repsol YPF and Woodside of Australia in search of gas in the Bacia de Campos. In May, the consortium announced discoveries. Vale and Petrobras announce partnership on Thursday for investment in gas in the Espirito Santo. The presidents of Petrobras, Jose Sergio Gabrielli, and Vale, Roger Agnelli, grant an interview at 9 am at the headquarters of the state.
Inside your program to obtain biodiesel, Vale said on Wednesday that has signed a partnership with Biopalma da Amazonia SA to produce palm oil as feedstock for biodiesel that will feed from 2014 the Carajas railroad, in Para.
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