The 2022 balance of the mining sector reveals a drop in performance compared to 2021. A 26% drop in revenue, 12% in production and 28% in exports was recorded. The data were presented today (7) by the Brazilian Mining Institute (Ibram), which represents the largest mining companies operating in the country. Before detailing the results, the director-president of the entity, Raul Jungmann, regretted the recent decision of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) that had impacts on the taxation of the sector and also defended stricter measures against illegal mining. According to the balance sheet presented, revenue for the year was R$ 250 billion. The result was mainly justified by the performance of the iron ore market. There was a reduction in Chinese demand for the commodity and also a devaluation in the price practiced internationally. Between January and December 2022, the price dropped by 24.8%. Iron ore accounted for 61% of all sector revenues in 2021, down from 74% in 2021. Investments Despite the result, Ibram points out that there was an increase in jobs and projects an increase in investments until 2027. more than 5,700 jobs from January to November, totaling almost 205,000 direct jobs”, says Raul Jungmann. According to him, investments should add up to US$ 50 billion over the next five years. Of this total, US$ 6.5 billion involve socio-environmental projects, which include, for example, the de-characterization of dams, the adoption of other more sustainable waste disposal methods and the development of innovation. Of the eight ores most exported by Brazil, China appears among the five main buyers for seven of them: iron ore, manganese, niobium, copper, ornamental stones, aluminum and kaolin. The largest producing states reduced their share in the sector’s total revenue. Minas Gerais fell from 42% to 40%, while Pará went from 43% to 37%. In view of this performance, there was an impact on the collection of various taxes in 2022. In the case of the Financial Compensation for the Exploitation of Mineral Resources (CFEM), considered the mining royalty, the collection of R$ 7.08 billion is 31.8% lower than the than in 2021. On the other hand, four states stood out with increased revenue: São Paulo (31%), Mato Grosso (8%), Bahia (7%) and Goiás (5%). Among minerals, increases were registered involving dolomitic limestone (39%), granite (23%) and bauxite (8%). Fee The creation of the Mineral Resource Inspection Fee (TFRM), through laws passed in some states, was the target of criticism by Raul Jungmman. Although questioned in court by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI), the constitutionality of the measure was recognized by the STF in August last year. The director-president of Ibram classified the situation as a “tax attack”, which would be harming the competitiveness of the sector. “Since then, six states have regulated the TFRM. In Mato Grosso, we had a rate 200% higher than the highest rate we had until then, practiced by the state of Tocantins”. Illegal mining Jungmann defended a joint effort to structure more effective solutions against the expansion of the chain of crimes associated with illegal mining in the Amazon. According to him, in addition to repressing individuals and organizations involved in this criminal practice, it is necessary to improve market surveillance and hold intermediaries and buyers criminally responsible. “Illegal mining destroys nature, destroys lives, leads to tragedies like we are seeing in Terra Yanomani. It is fundamental that we adopt the electronic invoice, because it allows traceability and data crossing”, he said. The director-president of Ibram also defended a gold certification, which should be observed by jewelers. “And we have another challenge that is much more complex. Most of the people who enter this chain of illegality do so because they lack alternative income and survival. So we need sustainable development projects for the Amazon,” he added. In force for almost 15 years, Federal Law 11,685 of 2008, known as the Garimpeiro Statute, establishes that mining can be carried out legally by any person or cooperative provided that permission is obtained from the National Mining Agency (ANM). The only exceptions involve indigenous lands and areas larger than 50 hectares. In the legislation, therefore, prospecting differs from mining in that it is limited to extraction carried out in small volumes and with low environmental impact. However, the activity developed over time. If in the past, mining was associated with people who used rudimentary or artisanal manual techniques, today there are groups operating in the Amazon in an increasingly professional, aggressive way and on an industrial scale, mobilizing expensive equipment, robust boats and backhoe loaders. While mining companies can refine, melt and export the extracted minerals, the prospector only receives authorization from the ANM for local extraction and sale to so-called Title and Securities Distributors (DTVMs). They are institutions authorized by the Central Bank and act as the gateway for gold and other minerals to the financial system, the international market or jewelry stores. Gold extracted from illegal areas is generally taken to regions where there is legal mining activity, where local intermediaries carry out the sale to DTVMs. According to the legislation, the prospector must self-declare the place where the extraction took place and his word is considered in good faith. According to Jungmann, there are five DTVMs associated with 90% of the signs of buying another illegal item and a complaint against them was filed by Ibram. “Today, a miner who produces illegal gold goes to a DTVM and registers it as if it were legal”, lamented Jungmman. Ibram is going to organize the Amazon & Bioeconomy International Conference in August, in which it intends to make the subject one of the main themes of the discussions. The event will take place in Belém (PA) and should bring together political authorities, researchers, businessmen and public managers. Concern over the increase in illegal mining has grown in recent weeks due to problems related to the humanitarian crisis in the Yanomami Indigenous Land, in Roraima. But public institutions and non-governmental organizations have already been warning about the scenario in recent years. In 2021, the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) issued a recommendation to the ANM for the adoption of measures against the escalation of mining in the Amazon. Last year, a report by the Human Rights Council of the United Nations (UN) pointed out that the government of former President Jair Bolsonaro was encouraging illegal actions by miners in the Amazon region.
Agência Brasil
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