CODEBA to manage Pirapora Port in move to reactivate São Francisco river waterway

Brazil’s federal port authority CODEBA will take over the management of the Port of Pirapora, in the state of Minas Gerais, as part of a broader effort to reactivate navigation along the São Francisco River waterway.

The move was formalized during a meeting held on Tuesday (03) in Belo Horizonte, marking the start of cooperation between CODEBA and Brazil’s federal transport infrastructure agency, the DNIT. The discussions set out the framework for regularizing documentation for the Port of Pirapora — which will now be operated by CODEBA — and outlined steps to restore vessels and resume river traffic between Pirapora and the cities of Juazeiro, in Bahia state, and Petrolina, in Pernambuco.

The meeting brought together CODEBA chief of staff Carlos Luciano and the regional head of DNIT in Minas Gerais, Antônio Gabriel Oliveira dos Santos, alongside technical and administrative staff from the federal agency.

According to Luciano, navigation along the so-called “new São Francisco River waterway” will require targeted interventions along the navigable stretch connecting Pirapora to Juazeiro and Petrolina. He said the initiative follows a directive from Brazil’s federal government and aims to establish coordinated action between CODEBA and DNIT to develop the inland waterway.

“CODEBA has already hired a company in Pirapora to carry out refurbishment and inspections of the vessels that will depart for Juazeiro and Petrolina,” Luciano said. “In the first half of the year, studies will be delivered so that we can begin maintenance dredging of the navigation channel.”

DNIT’s Oliveira dos Santos said the cooperation is expected to have a positive impact on the Port of Pirapora. “Our goal is to make the port operational again and contribute to regional development,” he said.

The Port of Pirapora was inaugurated in 1981 and was originally designed to handle dry bulk cargoes. Under CODEBA’s management, the inland terminal will become part of the New São Francisco River Waterway project, one of Brazil’s flagship inland logistics initiatives.

The São Francisco River — often referred to as the backbone of Brazil’s Northeast — is seen as strategically important for connecting the Southeast region to parts of the Northeast and northern Brazil. The revived waterway is expected to play a role in supplying the Southeast and the states of Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Bahia, while supporting regional economic development and reducing reliance on road transport.

Source: CODEBA

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