Vale the world's largest iron ore exporter, will offer a new product -- Sinter Feed Low 

Alumina  on  the  spot  market  this  year, a company official said at a major iron ore 

conference inSingapore Thursday. 

Sinter  Feed  Low Alumina, or SFLA will be one of the lowest alumina content traded 

ores and this is a good fit given the reduced availability of Chinese domestic concen

trates, said Luiz Meriz, Vale's International S.A. Marketing Director, Iron Ore. 

A  company  source  said this new product will have iron content of around 62% and 

come from the southern system in Brazil. 

"The alumina content of this product will be slightly below 1% and the silica is aroun

d 7%. It will be offered by end June, and will be sold on a spot basis," said the sourc

e. 

The same source added this new product will be first sold to China, the world larges

t steel producer, and could gradually be sold to other end-users in other part of the 

world. 

"The Japanese buyers are looking for low alumina ores," said the source.