Mar del Plata port to free up 1,600 meters of berth space by removing inactive vessels

The port of Mar del Plata expects to make 1,600 linear meters of quay frontage available this year for active vessels by removing out-of-service ships through scrapping, relocation or sinking, port officials said.

The effort recently completed the final disposal of the fishing vessel Graciela and is continuing with the cutting up of Sirius III, Marcos Gutierrez, head of the Regional Port Consortium of Mar del Plata, said in a statement. The program will target three additional hulls in 2026 that have remained inactive for years, he added.

“Between last year and this first stretch of 2026 we will be recovering nearly 400 meters, which allows us to clear areas that were blocked for a long time and put them back to use with vessels that are in full productive activity,” Gutierrez said.

In 2025, five inactive fishing vessels were removed and sent for scrap, the consortium said: Giuliana (63.89 meters long), Ribazon Dorine (38.5 meters), Sirius III (59.25 meters), Graciela (47 meters) and Coral Azul (50.75 meters). Up to that point, the port had recovered 1,400 meters of berth frontage, it said.

The consortium has run the initiative for several years and said vessel owners must commit to the process. Owners are responsible for the costs of moving and scrapping the ships, Gutierrez said.

Some inactive vessels that still meet minimal seaworthiness requirements have been towed and transferred to other ports, where their owners will determine their final use, the consortium said.

Most hulls, however, are headed for dismantling. Under an agreement with the Argentine Navy, the port consortium uses a dry dock at the Mar del Plata Naval Base where most scrapping work is carried out, it said.

A third option is sinking vessels off the Mar del Plata coast. The stated aim is to expand the so-called Cristo Rey underwater park, whose submerged hulls are an attraction for recreational and scientific diving and have helped support the city’s tourism offering, the consortium said.

In the initial phase of this year, the 46.10-meter vessel Mister Big will be scrapped, the consortium said. The fishing vessels Coral Blanco (50.75 meters) and Scombrus (36.12 meters) will be sunk off the coast, it added.