São Paulo – Mining company Pettrus Mineração wants to sell super-exotic ornamental stones to the Arab countries. The stones sport designs and colours unlike those of classic stones used regularly in construction.
“We work with consolidated quartz sandstone beds which are very rare. It is a translucent, rare stone,” says Maxwell Alcântara, the owner of Pettrus. “We also have quartz with quartzite stones, stones combining amethyst, tourmaline and quartz, and stones that combine iron, chalcedony and agate,” he says.
According to Alcântara, the stones are extracted by Pettrus in Bahia and their added value is high. The price is not calculated per cubic metre as in regular stones, but per tonnage. The most expensive variety offered by the company, Botanic Wave, costs up to US$ 2,500 per tonne, says the businessman.
Presently, 100% of Pettrus’ production is sold to Brazilian customers who process them into stone sheets and resell to the United States, to Latin American countries, and to Europe. As a for instance of the overseas success of his exotic stones, Alcântara tells of the ‘Estrela de Luz’ (Light Star) monument, erected in Mexico City in 2010 on occasion of the bicentennial of Mexican Independence. The monument was entirely built using a variety of quartz called Cristalo, supplied by Pettrus for US$ 2,000 per tonne.
To the businessman, seeking the Arab market in a direct manner is a means to boosting the company’s sales without competing with its own customers. To find importers in the region, Pettrus hired a Moroccan representative and will also participate in the Big 5, the leading construction fair in the Middle East, held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in November.
He is looking for distributors and marble vendors in the Middle East and North Africa who are interested in his product. “I believe we can have a good space in the Arab market. It would be interesting to show them our materials. There are clients who demand exclusive materials,” he says. Alcântara believes that the Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are the countries in the region with the highest potential for selling his products.
Pettrus is based in Cachoeiro do Itapemirim, in the state of Espírito Santo. The company produces 500 tonnes of super exotic stones each month, has 15 employees and posts annual revenues of around 2.5 million reals (US$ 1.2 million).
Contact
Pettrus
Tel.: +55 28 3511-5327
Email: petrus@pettrusnet.com.br
Site: www.pettrusnet.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
