The Stone Industry in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
Volume No.:
77 
Rio de Janeiro. Just the name brings to the mind images of interminable beaches, exuberant mountains, and, of course, the carnival. A city always in fiesta. But we cannot restrict ourselves to the topics already well known. No one can deny that nature has been very generous with Rio de Janeiro, but what but everyone does not know the state of Rio de Janeiro also possesses an important stone industry.
In spite of the fact that, for environmental reasons, many of the quarries have been closing down, since due to the growth of the city, they were located amidst the population, some of the biggest exporting companies of Brazil are located in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
The industry of granite in Brazil began in Rio de Janeiro before it did so in Minas Gerais or Espiritu Santo. The first granites that were exported from Brazil were Juparana, Negro Tijuca and Verde Ubatuba Classic, materials that are no longer extracted, and the quarries of which were located in Rio.
Rio de Janeiro was in its time an important producer of ornamental rocks. Towards the end of the eighties the environmental problems mentioned before led to the closing down of the quarries. Espirito Santo began to grow after the decadence of Rio.
In the state of Rio de Janeiro there are about 1200 companies. 62% of them are small workshops, located in the city, and 16% are quarries, located in the north east of the state.
From 1997 to 2002, exports increased by 242%, owing to the implantation of modern technology in the factories. Between 2002 and 2003 exports increased by 13%. The state of Rio de Janeiro has a very important level of exports, it occupies the second place in exports of elaborated stone in Brazil, the first place going to Espiritu Santo, and the total figure for 2004 could reach as much as US 150 million dollars.
- Classical Materials of Rio
- Juparana Classic: the quarries are closed.
- White Marble: the quarries are located in the north of the state of Rio.
- Azul Guanabara: the quarry is closed.
- Cinza As de Paus: commercialized only in the local market.
- Verde Ubatuba: originally it was from Rio de Janeiro, it is now extracted in Espiritu Santo.
- Cinza Friburgo.
- Juparana Gaviota.