Terminals plan achieving 1 billion-ton capacity
Valor Econômico
The growth of volume in the ports and the perspective the cargo operation curve continues upward in the average term allowed a series of investments of the private initiative in the expansion of terminals. According to the Brazilian Association of Port Terminals (ABTP), in four years Brazil may reach nearly 1 billion tons, compared to nearly 760 million this year. The investments will be made on all kinds of facilities - from those for the handling of commodities (cargo of lesser added value) to those operating containers, where traditionally are packed the nobler goods. Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional is putting R$ 410 million (US$ 241.2 million) in the expansion of its two terminals rented in the port of Itaguaí (RJ) - Tecar, dedicated to the handling of solid bulk, and Sepetiba Tecon, for the handling of containers. Such is the demand that the Port Company of Rio de Janeiro has requested the National Water Transportation Agency (Antaq) the permission to implement a new terminal in the RJ port - besides the CSN, Vale has an undertaking in the complex. The new facility should have capacity for 25 million tons.
The port improvement is in the order of the day. The port of Vitória (ES), for example, has two terminals, one rented for containers and another for fertilizers and cargo in general. Less than 10 million tons are operated a year. The problem is that the complex is nestled inside the city and has serious limitations that hamper the operation of large vessels. The alternative will be the construction of a new port from the ground, the so-called Deepwater Superport, which will be located in the region of Praia Mole. The perspective is that the works be bid in 2012.
Responsible for having nearly one fourth of the trade balance going through it navigation channel, Santos operates at its limit and bets on an ambitious plan to double the area to meet a projected volume of 230 million tons in 2024 - an increase of 140% on the 95.5 million tons estimated for 2010. To meet current project there are investments totaling R$ 3.18 billion (US$ 1.9 billion) in improvements and new terminals. Two will have sizes similar to Tecon Santos - Embraport and BTP, whose investments represent R$ 1.2 billion (US$ 705.9 million) and R$ 1.6 billion (US$ 941.2 million), respectively, according to the port authority.
Although it defends the thesis of gain in scale, which favors large the facilities to cheapen the costs of operation, the President of the port of Santos, José Roberto Serra, alerts to the need of medium-size projects. "It is not correct to think Santos will only receive mega vessels. We will continue with mid-sized ships of 3rd and 4th generations. Those of 5th and 6th will arrive at the large terminals. But who will cater to the smaller ships? And cabotage? The mid-sized terminals will", he answers.
Because it makes sense, says Serra, Tecondi is investing nearly R$ 185 million (US$ 108.8 million) to increase its capacity to operate 700 thousand TEUs a year. Anyhow, the increase of the offer for containers in Santos is urgent. The port already works very close to the ceiling of 3 million TEUs that the group of facilities can annually operate: 2010 should resume the levels of 2008, when 2.8 million TEUs went through in Santos.