Brazil’s Rumo breaks cargo record, invests in new rail terminals

Rumo, the largest railway operator in Brazil, recently published its Annual Sustainability Report. The seventh edition of the documents includes, among the highlights of 2022, the reasons behind the company’s best results on record.

In 2022, the company recorded over 74.9 billion TKM (tonne-kilometer), with a record set in July of 7 billion TKM, of which over 1,8 million were at the Rondonopolis terminal in Mato Grosso state. Furthermore, within the scope of Brado, the mark of more than 100 thousand containers handled in the year was reached.

It was a year of much investment. The company’s Board of Directors approved the start of work on the Mato Grosso State Integration Railway with the construction of a railway viaduct near km 8 of the new railway.

The first phase of the works, programmed to happen in stages, predicts 211 kilometers of rail tracks to Campo Verde, where there will be a first terminal. Estimated costs for this stretch are between BRL 4.5 billion and BRL 5 billion in nominal terms. The installed capacity on this stretch between Rondonópolis and Campo Verde will be between 32 million and 35 million tons per year, and the start of operations is scheduled for 2026.

Completing the works up to Campo Verde is the first step in bringing the railroad to other cities in the project, including Nova Mutum and Lucas do Rio Verde. The project calls for more than 700 kilometers of railway extension, passing through 16 municipalities and creating 236 thousand of employment positions in the state during the construction phase alone, including direct, indirect, and induced jobs.

Terminals

Two terminals were opened at the central network of the North-South Railway. In June, a partnership with Usina Coruripe resulted in the inauguration of the Comendador Rubem Montenegro Wanderley road-and-rail terminal in Iturama, Minas Gerais. With the capacity to handle 2.5 million tonnes of sugar for export (VHP) per year, the road-rail transshipment facility is a strategic milestone for logistics in the Triângulo Mineiro region, generating around 350 direct jobs in the area.

In August, a rail transfer terminal and a fertilizer mixer began operations in Rio Verde, Goiás state, as part of a project with the Andali S/A joint venture. The infrastructure novelty allowed fertilizers to be transported from the Port of Santos to Goiás. The total receiving capacity is up to 1.5 million tons annually, ensuring an efficient operation in the face of potential regional market growth. In addition, the terminal is responsible for 1,000 direct and indirect job creations.

In 2021, Rumo had already opened two other grain terminals in Goiás, one in São Simão, in partnership with Caramuru Alimentos, and the second in Rio Verde. Together, the four terminals form a robust network that serves the agribusiness and manufacturing industries alike.

In 2022, Rumo brought more than 1,200 wagons daily to Santos on average. This represents 60% of the port’s total capacity today. The company’s goal is to reach 1,700 wagons per day by 2025. In the last 12 years, the average investment in Santos was almost BRL 40 million per year.

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