Community 'has a right' to see Vale Inco takeover agreement: MPs

Nickel Belt MP Claude Gravelle and Sudbury MP Glenn Thibeault are calling on Vale Inco to publicly release the agreement it made with Industry Canada when it acquired Canadian-owned Inco in 2006.

“If Vale says that they haven’t broken the agreement, then why won’t they make it public? The community has a right to know exactly what they committed to when they purchased Inco,” said Gravelle.

“We sent a letter to Vale last month asking for a copy of this agreement, and to date we still have not received a response.”

The MPs were responding to comments made on Thursday by Vale CFO Fabio Barbossa that the company was “absolutely” complying with the Investment Canada Act despite three rounds of layoffs at its Canadian operations.

Vale officials had stated at the time that there would be no layoffs for three years after it purchased Inco. However, there were layoffs at the company earlier this year.

“We need the games to stop now.  If Vale Inco is a good corporate citizen, it should have no problem making this agreement public so the citizens of Sudbury can see it,” commented Thibeault. “Why won’t this government come clean and let us see what is actually in the deal with Vale?  Sudburians have to know that this Brazilian company is living up to its original commitment.”

The agreement is protected under S.36 of the Investment Canada Act and can only be released upon the consent of the company. Gravelle is currently drafting legislation that would amend S.36 to make all undertakings made by foreign companies during takeovers public.