British Court Denies Appeal and Keeps Vale in Proceedings.

Written by Paulo Nogueira

Published on 25/11/2023 at 12:49

Com isso, mérito da ação relativa à tragédia de Mariana será julgado

Be the first to react!

Decision Will Be Made Regarding the Merits of the Action Related to the Mariana Tragedy, with Significant Implications for the Parties Involved.

In the lawsuit, damages related to property and income, increased expenses, psychological effects, consequences of displacement, lack of water and electricity, and other damages are highlighted. In the case of indigenous peoples and quilombola communities, the impacts on cultural traditions and the consequences of interaction with the environment are also cited. These impacts cover a range of areas and are crucial for understanding the effects of the action on the affected communities.

The judge considered that there was not enough evidence that the Brazilian justice system was unable to guarantee fair compensation. However, in July 2022, the appeals court accepted the appeal of those affected and determined that the merits of the case should be examined. From that moment on, the Anglo-Australian mining company began advocating for the inclusion of Vale in the process.

According to a report released earlier this month by the Pogust Goodhead office, the value of the action is estimated at £66 billion, which is approximately R$ 230 billion. The lawyers also request that the interest rate be set at 12% per year from the date of the tragedy. In the event of a favorable decision, the division of resources should consider the percentage participation in the total estimated damages: 66% for individuals, 23% for municipalities, and 10% for companies. The remaining 1% refers to religious institutions that claim property losses and damage to ties with the devastated communities.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Court Decision on the BHP Billiton Case

Initially, BHP Billiton claimed that there was a repetition of legal processes and argued that compensation for damages should be granted exclusively under the supervision of Brazilian courts. The process was temporarily suspended at the beginning, during discussions on whether the case could be assessed in the country. Without delving into the merits of the issue, English judge Mark Turner accepted BHP Billiton’s arguments and ruled in 2020 that there was abuse, among other reasons, as conflicting decisions could arise from simultaneous judgments in Brazil and the United Kingdom.

Main Process
In addition to thousands of victims, municipalities, companies, and religious organizations are also claimants in the main process. In March of this year, 500,000 new sign-ups were made to the action. As a result, now more than 700,000 individuals and entities are being represented by the Pogust Goodhead law firm. The lawyers of those affected claim that Brazil has not been able to provide fair compensation. The hearings that will assess the responsibilities for the tragedy have been scheduled for October 2024.

The Vale issued a market statement informing about the British court’s decision. According to the text, the merits of the action have not yet been evaluated and judged. The statement highlights that Vale, as a shareholder of Samarco, believes that the solutions generated by agreements in Brazil, especially the TTAC, are capable of addressing the claims of the foreign process.

In a statement released, Tom Goodhead, CEO of the Pogust Goodhead law firm, stated that the mining companies cannot reach a consensus regarding the process. He emphasized that the two largest mining companies in the world are in litigation in the courts, instead of taking responsibility as owners of the dam that caused the worst environmental disaster in Brazil’s history. Goodhead further remarked that “No amount of money will be sufficient, but hiring the world’s most expensive lawyers to fight each other in court is a huge slap in the face for all those who continue to suffer daily because of this crime”.

More than eight years have passed, and the organization’s actions face numerous legal challenges from victims, the Public Ministry of Minas Gerais (MPMG), and the Federal Public Ministry (MPF). The discussions cover issues ranging from delays in completing reconstruction work in the destroyed areas to questions related to the amounts of compensations. An effort to renegotiate the reparation process, aimed at resolving more than 85,000 cases related to the tragedy, has been underway since last year.

BHP Billiton’s Response on the Work of the Renova Foundation

According to the statement, there is no need to repeat issues already addressed by the ongoing efforts of the Renova Foundation, which is under the supervision of Brazilian courts and is the subject of ongoing legal proceedings in Brazil. BHP Billiton claims that more than 200,000 affected individuals involved in the ongoing process in the United Kingdom have already received payments in Brazil.

The Renova Foundation was established in 2016 based on the Term of Transaction and Conduct Adjustment (TTAC) signed by the three mining companies, the Union, and the governments of Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo. The foundation is responsible for managing over 40 programs related to the environmental disaster.

A secondary action was filed by BHP Billiton against Vale, in which the Anglo-Australian miner argues that if found guilty, Vale should be responsible for at least half of the amount set by the court.

After the British court’s decision, BHP Billiton issued a statement reaffirming its position and declared that it is collaborating with Samarco and Vale to support the reparation process in Brazil. The company also challenged the allegations of those affected who filed the action and questioned the progress of the case in the United Kingdom.

Vale has until December 1 to submit its defense in a case ongoing in the UK judicial system related to the tragedy that occurred in the city of Mariana (MG) in November 2015. On Friday (24), a new decision was published, denying the miner’s request to appeal. Vale had been unsuccessfully questioning the competence of the British courts to examine the case. With the denial, the merits of the action will be judged.

This case is a follow-up to the action filed by thousands of affected people against the Anglo-Australian mining company BHP Billiton, headquartered in London. They are being represented by the Pogust Goodhead law firm and are seeking compensation for moral and material damages. Both BHP Billiton and Vale are shareholders of the Samarco mining company, which was responsible for the dam that collapsed, causing the tragedy. In the incident, 19 people lost their lives, and populations in several cities along the Doce River basin suffered severe impacts.

Source: InfoMoney

British Court Denies Appeal and Keeps Vale in Proceedings.

Decision Will Be Made Regarding the Merits of the Action Related to the Mariana Tragedy, with Significant Implications for the Parties Involved.

Court Decision on the BHP Billiton Case

BHP Billiton’s Response on the Work of the Renova Foundation

With billions in loans, China is rebuilding Nigeria’s railway network from scratch, abandoning the British colonial tracks that have turned to scrap and creating a corridor of over 1,300 km to take the load off the roads of Africa’s largest economy.

A British company has installed in the middle of the ocean the world’s first floating platform that generates electricity 24 hours a day from the temperature difference between the surface and the depths of the Atlantic, without relying on wind or sun.

China is building an artificial island in the middle of the sea, covering 20 km², to construct the largest offshore airport in the world, the Dalian Jinzhouwan. This $4.3 billion project is anchored on more than 3,000 pillars embedded in the rock beneath the ocean and is scheduled to open in 2035.

Forget petroleum-based asphalt: a Scottish company transforms 684,000 plastic bottles into one kilometer of road that is 60% more resistant and up to 10 times more durable, and the technology has already started replacing traditional asphalt in more than 30 countries.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Austrian engineers have developed an inflatable concrete technology that transforms flat slabs into domes using only air pressure, eliminating scaffolding and temporary forms, and potentially changing the way bridges, tunnels, and curved roofs are constructed worldwide.

Engineers had to pour concrete mixed with tons of ice throughout entire nights in the Dubai desert to erect the Burj Khalifa; any carelessness could clog the pipes half a mile high.

More than 1,000 Brazilian cities are already at high or very high risk of landslides, and projections indicate that one-third of the country could enter the danger zone by 2030.

Europe tests solar barriers on roads and the project could generate 25 MWh per km per year.

The battery that uses the cold night sky to generate electricity: scientists create a device that transforms heat escaping from the Earth into energy, even without sun, wind, or combustion.

James Webb finds a starless world with a rotation of only 2.4 hours, giant clouds of superheated sand, and auroras that heat the atmosphere to over 1,500 °C; a wandering object 20 light-years from Earth challenges even the definition of what a planet is.

Study reveals that El Niño is gaining strength in the Pacific, favoring the soybean crop in the United States in 2026 and increasing the risk of losses in Brazil due to excessive rainfall in the South and drought in the Midwest, a scenario that could affect global prices and agricultural exports.

British Court Denies Appeal and Keeps Vale in Proceedings.

Decision Will Be Made Regarding the Merits of the Action Related to the Mariana Tragedy, with Significant Implications for the Parties Involved.

Court Decision on the BHP Billiton Case

BHP Billiton’s Response on the Work of the Renova Foundation

With billions in loans, China is rebuilding Nigeria’s railway network from scratch, abandoning the British colonial tracks that have turned to scrap and creating a corridor of over 1,300 km to take the load off the roads of Africa’s largest economy.

A British company has installed in the middle of the ocean the world’s first floating platform that generates electricity 24 hours a day from the temperature difference between the surface and the depths of the Atlantic, without relying on wind or sun.

China is building an artificial island in the middle of the sea, covering 20 km², to construct the largest offshore airport in the world, the Dalian Jinzhouwan. This $4.3 billion project is anchored on more than 3,000 pillars embedded in the rock beneath the ocean and is scheduled to open in 2035.

Forget petroleum-based asphalt: a Scottish company transforms 684,000 plastic bottles into one kilometer of road that is 60% more resistant and up to 10 times more durable, and the technology has already started replacing traditional asphalt in more than 30 countries.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Austrian engineers have developed an inflatable concrete technology that transforms flat slabs into domes using only air pressure, eliminating scaffolding and temporary forms, and potentially changing the way bridges, tunnels, and curved roofs are constructed worldwide.

Engineers had to pour concrete mixed with tons of ice throughout entire nights in the Dubai desert to erect the Burj Khalifa; any carelessness could clog the pipes half a mile high.

While Brazil sits on the pre-salt and still imports diesel, Turkey, which produces almost no oil, crossed half the world to drill 7,500 meters below the sea in Somalia in search of its own fuel.

Why didn’t oil reach $150 even after three months of the Strait of Hormuz being closed?

Farmer drills well in Ceará in search of water, accidentally finds crude oil and sees million-dollar discovery hindered by a rule that completely changes the future of the site.

Family finds oil on a 49-hectare site in Ceará, but exploration has no timeline or guarantee of happening

When drilling an artesian well, a farmer wanted water but found oil: ANP confirms that the dark liquid found by a farmer on a site in Ceará is crude oil.

More than 1,000 Brazilian cities are already at high or very high risk of landslides, and projections indicate that one-third of the country could enter the danger zone by 2030.

Europe tests solar barriers on roads and the project could generate 25 MWh per km per year.

The battery that uses the cold night sky to generate electricity: scientists create a device that transforms heat escaping from the Earth into energy, even without sun, wind, or combustion.

James Webb finds a starless world with a rotation of only 2.4 hours, giant clouds of superheated sand, and auroras that heat the atmosphere to over 1,500 °C; a wandering object 20 light-years from Earth challenges even the definition of what a planet is.

Study reveals that El Niño is gaining strength in the Pacific, favoring the soybean crop in the United States in 2026 and increasing the risk of losses in Brazil due to excessive rainfall in the South and drought in the Midwest, a scenario that could affect global prices and agricultural exports.