Docking of Chinese boxship marks debut of new maritime route in Paranagua

With the docking of the Chinese boxship Cosco Shipping Brazil, the Port of Paranagua set in motion, this Monday (18), another maritime route that directly connects Southern Brazil with the Asian market. The itinerary, called the “ESA route,” links the east coast of South America directly with the Far East of Asia, strengthening Paraná’s commercial relations with the Chinese market.

The launch event took place at the Paranaguá Container Terminal (TCP) and was attended by Vice Governor Darci Piana, as part of the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Brazil and China.

“For the Port of Paranagua to enter a maritime route like this, which is a direct connection with China, signals Paraná’s importance in global trade and the market’s growing trust in the state. We are one of the world’s leading food producers, with an economy that outperforms the average in Brazil, as acknowledged by our trading partners,” said Piana.

In addition to Paranaguá, the ship will travel through other ports along the Brazilian coast. The ESA route includes Argentine and Uruguayan ports before heading to China and Singapore.

The vessel, named in honor of Brazil, was inaugurated in November 2023. It is 336 meters long and 51 meters wide, with a capacity of 14,1 thousand TEUs.

“A significant portion of our exports goes to China. One cannot overstate the importance of this trading partner, our main client. Strengthening this relationship is very important for us to have increasingly reliable routes with the Chinese market,” said Luiz Fernando Garcia, CEO of Portos do Paraná.

DISTINCTIVE FEATURES – An important feature of Cosco Shipping Brazil is the presence of 2.1 thousand plugs for refrigerated containers used in frozen cargo transportation. Paraná is the leader in Brazil in chicken meat production and the second-largest pork producer, with China being an important destination for these proteins. TCP, the terminal where the ship docked, is the national leader in the meat and frozen cargo segment, as it boasts the largest structure for refrigerated containers in Latin America. The terminal offers 5,100 outlets for refrigerated connections.

The chart below reveals which were the most exported refrigerated cargo shipped in containers through the Paranagua Container Terminal (TCP) in January 2024. The data is from DataLiner.

Paranagua Reefer Cargo | 2024 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

“The institution of this new route significantly expands the capacity for transporting refrigerated containers between Brazil and China, strengthening a commercial trade fundamental for both markets. Paraná has a solid agriculture sector, with infrastructure investments that serve this trade well,” said Zhu Bixin, director of Cosco Shipping.

CAPACITY – The docking further cements the Port of Paranaguá’s position on the route for large vessels. In January, a 366-meter-long ship docked at the terminal, setting a new record for the size of vessels received by Paranaguá.

The arrival of large ships stems from the efforts of the public company that manages the ports of Paranaguá and Antonina to expand the draft, with dredging and rock removal works.

Investments like these allowed Portos do Paraná to break the throughput record in 2023, with more than 65 million tonnes handled, a 12% increase compared to the previous year. Approximately 42.7 million tonnes were exported and 22.6 million tonnes imported.

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