Brazil Files $44 Billion Lawsuit Against Vale, BHP For Dam Spill

"Federal prosecutors in Brazil filed a 155 billion-real ($43.5 billion) civil lawsuit on Tuesday against iron miner Samarco and its owners, Vale SA and BHP Billiton, for a collapsed tailings dam in November that killed 19 people and polluted a major river.

The 359-page lawsuit, which is also against the two states affected by the spill and the federal government, is the result of a six-month investigation led by a task force set up after the disaster, prosecutors said in a statement.

The total damages, prosecutors said, were calculated based on the cost of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the United States. BP's total pre-tax charge for that spill, in 2010, reached $53.8 billion. "

Stephen Eisenhammer reports for Reuters May 3, 2016.