Ceará state ports close to handling 10 million tonnes in first half of 2023

The ports of Ceará state handled almost 10 million tonnes of cargo in 2023, according to data released by the Federal Government and Ceará. The National Waterway Transport Agency (Antaq) reported that the ports of Pecém and Mucuripe together moved 8.2 million tonnes from January to May.

The port of Pecém had a cargo throughput of 6.5 million tonnes compared to 1.7 million tonnes in Fortaleza. The port of Pecém, located between Caucaia and São Gonçalo do Amarante, also released June data, showing a movement of 1.5 million tonnes in that month alone, reaching 8 million tonnes in the first half of the year. The port of Pecém also grew by 2% compared to May this year.

The expectation is that the port of Fortaleza, managed by the Federal Government, will also release its data for June soon and that the 10 million mark is likely to be met, as the port has an average monthly throughput of 3.5 million tonnes.

However, the two Ceará state ports are still below their performance in the same period in 2022. Last year, Pecém handled 8.8 million tonnes in the first half of the year. On the other hand, the port of Fortaleza had a slight drop from January to May, from 1.75 million tonnes in 2022 to 1.72 million tonnes this year.

During the first half of the year, the main goods handled by the port of Pecém were: iron ore (2.4 million tonnes); cast iron, iron, and steel (1.7 million tonnes); mineral fuels and oils (1.1 million tonnes); salt, sulfur, soil and stone, gypsum, lime, and cement (0.4 million tonnes); and cereals (0.4 million tons). In addition, the YTD movement of containers reached 202,353 TEUs, an increase of 6% compared to the same period of 2022.

Mucuripe, on the other hand, transported more oil and derivatives without crude oil (0.5 million tonnes); wheat (0.4 million tonnes); oils and derivatives with crude oil (0.2 million tonnes), and cement (0.1 million tonnes). Other cargoes include grain, minerals, food, wind farm equipment, and large machinery.

The port of Pecém is a multi-cargo terminal that focuses on moving solid bulk, liquid bulk, containers, and general cargo in its ten berths. It is considered a port hub in the maritime transport logistic chain, currently connected by seven cabotage lines and three long-haul routes.

“We have had two consecutive months with our best historical result in the number of containers. We are working and advancing in the prospecting and negotiating new cargoes, mainly vegetable bulk, project cargoes in the energy and Oil&Gas sector,” said André Magalhães, commercial director of Pecem Complex.

Source: O Povo

Sharing is caring!