Brazilian miner Vale has been forced to suspend operations at its iron ore mine in Brucutu after an earlier court decision was reversed, Reuters reports. The company’s iron ore operations have been in turmoil since the collapse of a dam with tragic consequences in January, as outlined in Panjiva’s research of Feb. 11. That was followed by a water contamination problem at its pelleting plant in Tubarão.

Panjiva data shows that Vale’s exports of iron ore from Brazil have fallen by 33.8% year over year in March, to their lowest since at least 2014 as a consequence of the closures.

Chart shows exports of iron ore from Brazil by Vale from a selection of carriers.  Source: Panjiva

In terms of downstream impacts buyers in China will have felt slightly less impact than average with a 29.2% year over year decline. As a result they accounted for 60.2% of exports in 1Q 2019 from 55.1% a year earlier. While suggestive of a preference for Chinese buyers it is hardly conclusive.

Finally, Vale’s cut has only been partially offset at the national level by supplies from smaller operators including CSN which surged 36.9% higher – total Brazilian exports still dropped 22.2%.

Chart segments exports of iron ore from Brazil from a subset of carriers by shipper and destination.  Source: Panjiva