Norcoast offers solution to mitigate drought in the Amazon

Norcoast, a Brazilian coastal shipping company, has announced a solution to mitigate the potential impacts of the drought in the Amazon. The operation focuses on transshipping containers via a 240-meter-long and 24-meter-wide floating pier installed in the Itacoatiara region. The pier will be operational from September, possibly earlier, depending on the water level and the dredging conducted by the government. The goal is to ensure the continuity of logistics operations throughout the dry season.

Ricardo Nuno, Norcoast’s Operations Director, explains that this terminal will be positioned before two critical points on the Amazon River (Tabocal and Enseada do Rio Madeira), which lack sufficient depth for ships to pass during the dry season. “With this solution, all the cargo will be transferred to barges that can navigate on shallower waters and transport the containers to Manaus,” he states.

Technically, this operation involves Norcoast’s ships docking at the floating pier while barges will anchor alongside the pier, where three cranes with 64-meter arms will unload the containers from the vessel and place them onto the barges to continue the journey.

The dry season in the Amazon is not new, and this year’s drought is expected to be even more severe than last year’s, raising uneasiness about supply chain issues during a period of high demand as the region prepares for year-end sales.

Gustavo Paschoa, Norcoast’s CEO, emphasizes that the situation is concerning, as rivers are the main transportation routes in the Amazon, and the region’s entire economic dynamic depends on them. “We are implementing this mitigation strategy to ensure coastal navigation even during the dry season so as not to disrupt the logistical flow in this region. We understand the economic and social impact of a severe drought, as we experienced last year, and all indications are that it will happen again this year,” he adds.

The transportation of goods along the Amazonian rivers is vital for Brazil’s economy. According to the National Agency for Waterway Transportation (Antaq), the Amazon Hydrographic Region transported over 71 million tonnes of cargo last year alone, with the Amazon River being the main route, handling more than 34 million tonnes, including food, construction materials, industrial supplies, and fuel, among other goods.

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