Paranagua Container Terminal celebrates 16M TEUs handled in history

In the last week of August, the company on top of the Paranaguá Container Terminal (TCP) reached a historic milestone: a 16 million TEU throughput since 1998. The record-breaking moment occurred amidst cargo operations on the Cap San Maleas vessel, operated by Maersk.

In terms of cargo content, the company divides cargo into segments. The meat and frozen goods industry led in exports in the first seven months of 2023 (140,508 TEUs), followed by commodities such as wood, paper, pulp, and other agriculture products (81,391 TEUs). Consumer goods and electronics led the way in imports, with 46,274 TEUs handled during the same time period, followed by the car sector with 44,759 TEUs.

The chart below further describes the movement of containers at TCP between Jan 2019 and Jul 2023. The data is from DataLiner.

Container movement at TCP | Jan 2019 – Jul 2023 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

Nicolas Wang, the Superintendent of Operations and Safety, celebrated this historic achievement. “Reaching this new milestone, especially in the year the terminal marked its 25th anniversary, validates the excellence of our employees’ work and underscores the significance of recent investments,” emphasized Wang.

One of the terminal’s most substantial investments has been in the reefer area, dedicated to storing temperature-controlled containers. “The expansion of the number of electrical outlets from 3,572 to 5,126 keeps the terminal in the national lead for reefer area, with frozen meat being the primary export commodity,” explained Wang.

The increase in electrical outlets is part of the latest infrastructure investment package announced by TCP in 2022. R$ 370 million is being allocated to projects such as gate expansion (vehicle entry and exit points), the installation of a power substation, and new equipment, among others.

In addition to infrastructure investments, TCP also benefits from a railway connection, the only one in the country’s southern region with direct access to the customs zone. Through this railway, over 58,355 thousand cargo containers destined for export arrived at the terminal in the first seven months of the year.

“Out of these 16 million TEUs handled throughout our history, 1.16 million were recorded in 2022 alone. These numbers represent a 619% increase in annual throughput compared to the terminal’s foundation year. These results give us confidence that we are moving in the right direction to achieve more outcomes for our clients and the country’s economy,” Wang concluded.

Developments in Animal Protein Exports

Considered the world’s largest outlet for frozen chicken meat exports, TCP exported over 46,000 containers of this product in the first half of 2023 alone. During this period, beef exports through the terminal experienced an 86% growth compared to the first six months of the previous year, reaching 8,479 containers.

According to Wang, “We export to major destinations, with a focus on China, which has high consumption. The investment in the terminal’s reefer area, the largest in Brazil, provides operational flexibility for receiving and storing goods in line with the segment’s requirements.”

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