Brazilian mining giant Vale played down a media report alleging that it has shelved its plan for a public share listing of its base metals subsidiary.
The company has repeatedly said that it could carry out an IPO of Vale Base Metals, which produces copper and nickel in Canada, Brazil and Indonesia, and was reportedly considering listing shares this year.
Those plans have now been shelved, according to Canadian newspaper The Globe & Mail, which attributed the delay to political considerations in the run up to Brazil’s presidential election in October.
Vale said in a statement that it does not comment “market rumors and speculation.”
“Our priority is to accelerate organic growth in copper and enhance operational efficiency in nickel,” the Rio de Janiero-headquartered firm said in a statement.
“Our focus today is to continue to grow value by increasing our productivity and competitiveness, optimize our portfolio, and advance our growth pipeline,” it said. “We are well-advanced on our transformation and building a consistent track record of delivery.”
Vale holds a 90% stake in the business and the remainder is owned by Manara Minerals, a joint venture between Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and state-owned mining enterprise Ma’aden.
“They have been saying for some time that an IPO would be a natural path,” said an investment analyst. “They may be reviewing the timing of this deal depending on windows of opportunity. It does not mean they will not go ahead with these plans at some point.”