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Bravo Mining Plans $784.9 Million Investment to Develop Luanga in Carajás, Featuring a Mine, Processing Plant, and Metallurgical Facility in Pará.
According to Bravo Mining, the Canadian company announced this Tuesday, September 22, 2026, a concrete figure for a project that has been drilled and studied for years in Pará: $784.9 million, about R$ 4 billion at current exchange rates, would be needed before production begins at the Luanga project.
The plan combines an open-pit mine in Curionópolis, located in the heart of the Carajás Mineral Province, with a processing plant and metallurgical facility about 600 kilometers away in Barcarena. Along the way, nickel, palladium, platinum, rhodium, and gold will be extracted, concentrated, and processed within the state.
$603.6 Million Allocated Near the Mine
The pre-feasibility study divides the costs into two main blocks. The majority, $603.6 million, will go to the mine and processing plant.
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Of this amount, $280.6 million is directly linked to the mechanical equipment of the plant, while electrical structures, civil works, dams, mine preparation, and engineering complete the package.
An additional $181.3 million is earmarked for the metallurgical facility in Barcarena.
Together, these two fronts bring the initial investment to $784.9 million. The company also estimates an additional $98.2 million in maintenance capital over the life of the operation.
Luanga is Located in Curionópolis, About 40 km from Parauapebas
The mineral aspect of the project is in Curionópolis, in southeastern Pará. Luanga occupies an area of approximately 7,810 hectares and is about 40 kilometers from Parauapebas, one of the main cities in Brazilian mining.
Paved roads, railways, hydropower, and an existing supply chain in Carajás are among the advantages cited by the company.
Rather than starting a mineral operation in a completely isolated area, Bravo is surrounded by decades of infrastructure built to support large iron, copper, and other mineral mines in Carajás.
Reserve Reaches 86.7 Million Tons
The study released now also provided the first formal declaration of mineral reserves for the project. Bravo estimates 86.7 million tons of proven and probable reserves, with an average grade of 2.77 grams of palladium per ton.
This classification is stricter than simply indicating found resources underground because it incorporates technical and economic factors used to evaluate the feasibility of mining.
These 86.7 million tons do not fully include the results of another 22,100 meters of exploration and infill drilling carried out in 2026. This work continues to be incorporated into geological studies.
A week before the study was released, the company announced new intercepts of nickel and platinum group metals in different parts of the deposit.
Plant Could Process Nearly 10 Million Tons Per Year
The base scenario forecasts an average processing of 8.67 million tons per year, reaching just over 10 million tons annually during peak production periods. The initial lifespan considered in the study is approximately 9.6 years.
In addition to the 86.7 million tons of ore, the plan estimates the movement of 576.1 million tons of material without sufficient economic value for processing.
This is a large-scale open-pit mining operation.
Palladium and Platinum Dominate a Basket of Five Metals
Luanga stands out because it does not depend on a single metal. Over its projected lifespan, the study estimates about 2.09 million ounces of palladium, 1.51 million ounces of platinum, 161,000 ounces of rhodium, and 181,000 ounces of gold available for sale after the expected recoveries in the industrial process.
Nickel appears in another unit. The projection is for approximately 98,200 tons of payable nickel during the operation.
Palladium, platinum, and rhodium belong to the platinum group metals, known by the acronym PGM. These materials are used in various industrial applications, including emission control systems, chemistry, electronics, and specialized technologies.
Nickel, in turn, remains important for alloys, stainless steel, and certain battery chemistries.
The Plan Does Not End with the Concentrate Leaving the Mine
It is in Barcarena that the strategy deviates from the simplest path. A mining company could extract the ore, produce a concentrate, and send this material to a metallurgical plant in another country. Bravo is considering adding another phase within Pará.
The subsidiary Bravo Metals has received authorization to install its industrial project in the Barcarena Export Processing Zone, also known as ZPE. The facility will produce alloys containing nickel and metals such as palladium, platinum, and rhodium.
Barcarena is adjacent to the Port of Vila do Conde and already has a supply chain related to aluminum, fertilizers, logistics, and mineral processing.
The concentrate produced in Curionópolis would travel about 600 kilometers before reaching the metallurgy facility.
Barcarena would also receive sulfuric acid as a byproduct
The furnace would not only produce a metallic alloy. The study estimates an accumulated production of approximately 878,000 tons of sulfuric acid over the project’s lifespan. The material would emerge as a byproduct of the metallurgical processing.
The region hosts fertilizer operations, and sulfuric acid is used in that industry. Bravo notes the possibility of selling the product locally, reducing the need to find a distant destination for some of the material generated by the process.
Port, industry, and metallurgy thus come together in the same equation.
Study estimates US$ 9.3 billion in revenue over the project duration
In the base scenario, gross revenue accumulated during the mine’s life is expected to reach approximately US$ 9.32 billion. The projected EBITDA, before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, totals US$ 4.2 billion.
The net present value after taxes has been estimated at US$ 1.45 billion, using a discount rate of 8%.
The calculated internal rate of return is 35.1%, with capital recovery expected in about two years after operations begin.
These figures are from a pre-feasibility study, not guaranteed money. Fluctuations in the prices of nickel, palladium, platinum, rhodium, and gold can significantly impact this calculation.
Project already has preliminary license, but construction is not yet authorized
The mine is not ready to begin construction tomorrow. The Environmental and Sustainability Secretariat of Pará granted the Preliminary License in March 2025, following an environmental study and a public hearing.
This document recognizes the environmental viability of the proposed location and concept but does not substitute the necessary license to physically install the venture.
Bravo intends to submit the request for the Installation License in the fourth quarter of 2026.
A definitive feasibility study also needs to be completed, leading to the final investment decision, where the company determines if it will commit the necessary capital to construct the project.
The same applies to Barcarena. Authorization to enter the ZPE opens the industrial and tax door but does not serve as an environmental license to build the metallurgy facility.
The next leap occurs between the study and the construction site
Luanga has already moved beyond the phase where everything hinges only on exploratory drilling in the ground.
There is a declared reserve, preliminary license, pre-feasibility engineering, authorization for an industrial project in the Barcarena Free Trade Zone, and a detailed estimate of the necessary capital.
However, the step that separates most mineral projects from mines that actually come into operation is still lacking.
Bravo will need to complete the definitive study, obtain the Installation License, structure financing, and approve the final investment decision.
If these steps are followed through, the US$ 784.9 million will cease to exist only on an engineering spreadsheet.
That’s when excavation, plants, power lines, equipment, and a metallurgical facility 600 kilometers away will begin.
The Canadian company’s plan is to transport the ore from Curionópolis to Barcarena without leaving Pará during the stage when the metals gain the most value.
