Mitsui & Co. said Tuesday it has agreed to take a 15 percent stake in Valepar S.A., the top shareholder in Companhia Vale do Rio Doce of Brazil, the world's largest iron ore producer.
Mitsui said it will purchase 19.61 million shares in Valepar from Brazilian investment bank Bradespar for $830 million (about 98.77 billion yen), pending regulatory approval, and have a seat on the boards of Valepar and Rio Doce.
Mitsui said it also plans to sell 659.38 million common shares and 1.04 billion preferred shares in Brazilian iron ore producer Caemi Mineracao e Metalurgia S.A. to Rio Doce for $426 million (about 50.69 billion yen) pending regulatory approval.
This represents 50 percent of Caemi's outstanding common shares and 40.01 percent of its outstanding preferred shares, it said.
The deal will make Caemi, a 50-50 joint venture between Mitsui and Rio Doce, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Doce.