Vale and ABB have entered into a strategic partnership aimed at developing automation, digitalisation and integrated IT/OT technology solutions for iron ore processing operations in Brazil.
The agreement follows their work together at Vale’s Conceição II Model Plant in Itabira, Minas Gerais, which is the company’s first high-tech and AI-enabled iron ore facility.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The companies intend to replicate the technology systems implemented at the Itabira site across multiple Vale iron ore plants in Brazil.
These solutions are designed to improve safety, enhance productivity and support sustainability in mineral production.
The Conceição II Model Plant, inaugurated in June 2026, is a central project within Vale’s Mining of the Future strategy.
ABB served as consultant, technology provider and systems integrator, focusing on advanced automation, digitalisation and IT/OT integration.
As part of the upgrade, more than 100 monitoring cameras and over 7,000 automated instruments, including measurement devices and sensors, were installed at the 11.2 million tonnes per year facility.
Analytical data tools are applied to oversee, regulate and enhance more than 400 variables throughout the entire ore processing sequence.
The design of operational processes was also reassessed in order to predict potential faults and minimise unexpected stoppages.
Vale operations vice-president Carlos Medeiros said: “The Model Plant Project has shown that new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, improve employee safety and increase productivity, operational efficiency and quality in mining.
“Now, we are going to take this learning to other Vale operations, increasing the predictability of processes, improving the use of mineral resources and reducing people’s exposure to risky activities.”
Vale reports that since implementing these digital solutions at Conceição II, the site has seen productivity rise by 25%, production of premium ore for direct reduction increase by 40%, and iron losses in tailings fall by 26%.
The automation has also reduced the need for manual interventions, which contributes to safer operations.
ABB’s Automation division focuses on automating, electrifying and digitalising industrial operations across various sectors, including mineral production.
In June 2026, ABB launched Grinding Connect, a digital service suite for mining operators using gearless mill drive (GMD) systems.
