Samarco to pay 20b reais in damages for spill

Brasilia

Mining company Samarco and its owners, BHP Billiton and Vale SA, reached a deal with the Brazilian government on Wednesday to pay an estimated 20 billion reais (S$7.2 billion) in damages over 15 years for a deadly dam spill in November.

Considered Brazil's worst environmental disaster, the burst tailings dam in the state of Minas Gerais killed 19 people, left hundreds homeless and polluted a major river.