New container yard at Port of Vitoria is ready but still cannot operate

A 65,000-square-meter area that could expand container storage capacity at the Port of Vitoria by as much as 40% is ready to begin operations, but it still cannot do so. The facility is awaiting clearance from Brazil’s federal revenue service, which has yet to be granted, even though the request was filed 160 days ago, according to the company.

The area was arranged by Vports, the concessionaire responsible for the Port Complex of Vitoria, with Log-In Logistica, the company that operates the Vila Velha Port Terminal (TVV), the only terminal handling containers in Espirito Santo state. The measure is seen as critical to improving cargo flows, both imports and exports, through Espirito Santo. TVV, which currently has 103,000 square meters, would expand to nearly 170,000 square meters. Investment in the new structure totaled 35 million reais.

“Everything is ready, but we are still waiting for clearance from Receita Federal. We know there are structural issues, but 160 days have already passed and we still have no response. The impact on Espirito Santo’s economy is enormous,” said Gustavo Paixao, Log-In’s general director of terminals.

“I am traveling to China to negotiate the movement of cargo to Brazil through Espirito Santo, but I will arrive there without any guarantee regarding our expansion. That is very bad for the state. It opens the possibility that cargo that would come here may end up going to other port terminals because there is no space to receive it in Vitoria. Today, we are operating at 97% occupancy, and we have reached as high as 121%. There is a serious risk of collapse,” he warned.

The executive said the situation has worsened further in recent weeks with the end of another terminal contract, Peiu’s agreement with Vports. “It was a 40,000-square-meter area, in addition to a berthing slot, that we had been using to give the operation some breathing room, but the contract expired. The unavailability of these areas is already resulting in vessel queues waiting to berth.”

With the start of the conilon coffee harvest in April, Gustavo Paixao said he fears a repeat of the disruption seen in 2024, when exports and imports surged and TVV was operating with reduced capacity because modernization works were still underway. “Expectations are for an increase in conilon coffee exports, and we are in this borderline situation. We may end up reliving what we saw in 2024.”

The expansion project, which included infrastructure upgrades and technological modernization, has been fully completed and has already received approval from agencies including the Vila Velha city government, Antaq, Brazil’s waterway transport regulator, the fire department, and Iema, the state environmental agency. What remains is the customs-bonding stage, the authorization required to handle cargo and/or people arriving from or departing abroad, which is currently under review by the Brazilian government.

Source: A Gazeta

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