CVRD: ANTT Approves Restructuring of Stakes in Railroads

Rio de Janeiro, September 18, 2003 – Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) informs that ANTT, the Brazilian regulatory agency for the transportation sector, has approved two important measures related to the restructuring of railroad companies.

The first refers to the unwinding of the cross shareholdings in railroads concessions as announced by CVRD in a press release issued on April 16, 2003. ANTT authorized the proposals for the transfer of CVRD’s stake in Companhia Ferroviária do Nordeste (CFN) to CSN and Taquari Participações S.A. (Taquari), and the acquisition by CVRD of CSN’s stake in Ferrovia Centro-Atlântica (FCA). The conclusion of these transactions is still subject to the fulfillment of other conditionalities.

The second decision authorized a capital increase of R$ 1,003,238,949.17 in FCA. R$ 798,298,949.17 has already been capitalized and the remaining amount will be paid in four bimonthly installments according to FCA’s management proposal approved by the General Shareholders Meeting held on May 14, 2003. Therefore, and after stakes held by other parties are acquired, CVRD will own 99.99% of FCA total capital and 99.99% of its voting capital.

The control of FCA’s equity capital will allow the full integration of this railroad into CVRD’s logistics strategy. As a result, new investments in the railroad infrastructure and equipment will help to improve and increase logistic services provided to clients.

This press release may contain statements that express management’s expectations about future events or results rather than historical facts. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements, and CVRD cannot give assurance that such statements will prove correct. These risks and uncertainties include factors: relating to the Brazilian economy and securities markets, which exhibit volatility and can be adversely affected by developments in other countries; relating to the iron ore business and its dependence on the global steel industry, which is cyclical in nature; and relating to the highly competitive industries in which CVRD operates. For additional information on factors that could cause CVRD’s actual results to differ from expectations reflected in forward-looking statements, please see CVRD’s reports filed with the Brazilian Comissão de Valores Mobiliários and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.