On April 4, as previously announced, a conciliatory hearing was held between Ministério Público (Public Prosecution Office), Norsk Hydro Brasil, and Alunorte regarding the refinery embargo.

During the hearing, Ministério Público and Alunorte provided information to the judge regarding the progress of the ongoing third-party assessment of two reports, both concluding that Alunorte can safely resume normal operations.

If the third-party assessment supports the conclusions of SEMAS (Secretary of State for Environment and Sustainability) and the University of Campina Grande, Ministério Público will file a petition to the Federal Court in Belém confirming it would not oppose lifting Alunorte’s production embargo. The conclusion of the assessment is scheduled for April.

The Judge scheduled a new conciliatory hearing for April 12, when he will have the opportunity to listen to the third-party technical experts who are analyzing the two reports. The process does not include a timeline for the decision to be made by the court.

“We are in a constructive process with Ministério Público, and we are demonstrating that Alunorte is safe to the environment and the population in Barcarena," says Executive Vice president John Thuestad, head of Hydro’s Bauxite & Alumina business area.

Alunorte continues to work to find a path to resume activities at its bauxite residue disposal area, DRS2 and return to normal operations, following government actions taken after extreme rainfall in Barcarena in February 2018.

Alunorte is duly delivering on the commitments agreed in the TAC (Term of Adjusted Conduct) signed with Ministerio Público Federal, Pará State Ministério Público, and the State Government of Pará, represented by SEMAS.