The company is also moving forward with reparation and expects to complete stages of the New Rio Doce Agreement in 2026
In 2025, Samarco posted a record in its operating results since resuming activities, positioning the company as the third-largest exporter of pellets in the seaborne market. Over the year, the company produced 15.11 million tons of pellets and iron ore fines, shipped on 140 vessels through its own port terminal in Ubu (ES), and exported to steelmakers on every continent for steel production.
From the resumption of operations in December 2020 through December 2025, Samarco has produced 50.52 million tons, with 500 vessels loaded, reinforcing the stability and efficiency of its production process. In October of last year, the company reached the milestone of 500 million tons of pellets and ore fines shipped since the start of its operations in 1977.
According to Samarco’s president, Rodrigo Vilela, 2025 was a year that reaffirmed the company’s ability to overcome challenges, adjust course, and keep evolving responsibly. “We completed foundational stages, doubled our production capacity, and moved forward in a consistent and decisive way in the reparation process,” he says.
For 2026, the outlook is for further progress in implementing the New Rio Doce Agreement, completing actions in the areas of compensation, new districts, and the environment. This year’s projection includes completing the cash compensation programs and the six projects in the Novo Bento Rodrigues district that were defined after the agreement was ratified by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in November 2024. On the environmental front, continued efforts are expected to restore springs and carry out reforestation throughout the entire Rio Doce Basin.
Safe and sustainable growth
The company currently operates at 60% of its installed production capacity and continues preparing to reach 100% by 2028 in Germano and by 2029 in Ubu, with approved investments of BRL 13.8 billion in plant revitalization, expansion of filtration systems, and equipment modernization.
“By approving the largest investment in the company’s history and solidifying our position among the world’s leading pellet exporters, we’re showing that Samarco is ready for a new cycle of growth. We will remain firm in our commitment to people, to safety, and to mining that is increasingly sustainable and innovative,” Vilela emphasizes.
For the restart, Samarco changed its production process, discontinuing the use of dams for tailings disposal and incorporating a filtration system for dry stacking, and it also advanced the process of decommissioning the Germano dam, which is at an advanced stage and is expected to be completed this year.
Regional development
To achieve these results, the company currently has about 20,500 employees, including direct hires and contractors, maintaining its commitment to regional hiring. At the Germano (MG) sites and the Mariana office, 75.9% of employees hired last year live in neighboring communities. At the Ubu Complex in Anchieta (ES), 67.4% of the workforce brought on last year is also made up of professionals from the region. “These indicators reinforce our role as an agent of socioeconomic development in the regions where we operate,” Vilela noted.
As part of that commitment, Samarco offered 16 new training classes last year through the Community Courses Program. There were 12 technical courses and four vocational courses, totaling 535 openings. Since the program began in 2022, a total of 1,265 residents from host communities have already participated in 46 classes, strengthening local professional qualifications and expanding opportunities to enter the job market.
Also focused on income generation and regional socioeconomic development, the Força Local Program continued expanding its work in 2025, strengthening companies in the region. The initiative encourages competitiveness, income generation, and economic diversification, contributing to the sustainable development of communities.
In recent years, the company has offered 850 openings in vocational courses through the program. In 2025, 57 companies completed their training in Força Local within the Empretec platform, a high-impact methodology created by the United Nations (UN) to foster entrepreneurial behavior and promote strategic business management.
Since the Força Local Program was created in 2020 through December of last year, BRL 5.1 billion was spent by Samarco on procurement from local suppliers, more than 4,400 regional companies were included, 550 companies were certified under the Development and Qualification pillar, and more than 18,500 people were reached by its training initiatives.
“The results show that we honor our commitments and keep building sustainable mining that shares value with society, engages with communities, and invests in technology. We learned from the past and want to leave a legacy everyone can be proud of,” Vilela concludes.
Commitment to definitive reparation
In 2025, the New Rio Doce Agreement had its methodology for development and renegotiation recognized by the Innovare Award in the “Court” category for the consensual resolution of complex conflicts. Considered the most important prize in the Brazilian justice system, it is organized by the Innovare Institute in partnership with the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, the Office of the Attorney General of the Union (AGU), legal associations, and the National Council of Justice (CNJ).
From the ratification of the New Rio Doce Agreement in November 2024 through December 2025, BRL 33.6 billion was allocated. Of that amount, BRL 22.8 billion relates to Samarco’s direct obligations, including the payment of BRL 16.67 billion in compensation to more than 353,000 people. Another BRL 10.9 billion was transferred to the federative entities to strengthen public policies, stimulating local economic momentum. On the environmental front, the company advanced in restoring the territory, reaching 45,500 hectares fenced and protected (91% of the 50,000 ha target) in reforestation areas, in addition to protecting 4,300 springs (86% of the 5,000 target), consolidating important stages for environmental recovery.
Since 2015, the amounts allocated to reparation and compensation—added to the amounts disbursed last year—have reached BRL 71.9 billion, including BRL 38.3 billion executed by the now-defunct Renova Foundation. The New Rio Doce Agreement provides for a total amount of BRL 170 billion over 20 years.
“We are working to implement the New Rio Doce Agreement in a way that ensures definitive reparation, a commitment that runs in parallel with our operational restart. The consistent resumption of our operations enables us to move forward safely and sustainably, promoting the economic and social development of the regions and rigorously and transparently fulfilling the agreed reparation actions. We made important progress in 2025 and will continue with a more sustainable operation and actions in support of definitive reparation in 2026,” Vilela says.