Announcing its first climate change report late yesterday, Vale said it would invest between US$4-$6 billion in "technological solutions" to reduce its scope 1 and 2 emissions by 33% by 2030.
Any residual emissions would be removed and compensated through "nature-based solutions," the company said.
The amount is at least double what was flagged last year, when Vale announced plans to invest at least $2 billion to reduce its carbon footprint by 33% by 2030 and cut 15% of its scope three emissions by 2035.
Vale also said yesterday it had committed to achieving 100% renewable electricity consumption at its Brazil operations by 2025 and globally by 2030.
"No other mining company has this level of ambition," CEO Eduardo Bartolomeo said in the report.
Vale also announced the target to protect and recover 500,000ha of forests in Brazil by 2030.
The company said 57% of its scope 1 and 2 emissions came from its pelletizing and metallurgy processes, mainly due to fossil fuel consumption in the furnaces.
Its main decarbonisation solutions were increased use of bioenergy, electrification through the use of plasma to substitute fossil fuels, and energy efficiency gains, adding it had been piloting substitutions and would test the use of biocarbon and bio-oil in 2021.
In terms of reducing scope 3 emissions, Vale said it was strategically positioned to help customers reduce their carbon footprint, citing the "green briquette" with the potential to reduce steel-making customers' emissions by up to 10% as an example.
Vale said it would employ "limited use" of high-integrity carbon credits.
"Since shipping and steel are hard-to-abate sectors, science recognises that these sectors may use carbon credits to compensate for residual emissions," Vale said.
"In this scenario, Vale can use carbon credits to deliver up to 20% of its scope 3 absolute emission reduction to 2035, the equivalent of 90 MtCO2e."
Vale said it would publish a climate change report annually.
Its Brazil-listed shares have fallen from an all-time high reached in June.
They closed down 2.27% yesterday to close at BRL74.75, capitalising it at BRL382 billion (US$69 billion).
