Paranaguá’s expanded pier is inaugurated & increased draft work commissioned

The expansion of the pier at the Port of Paranaguá was inaugurated on September 22. Berth 201 was modernized and the mooring pier was extended by 100 meters. The investments of the public company Portos do Paraná totaled R$ 201.7 million and will increase the current cargo-handling capacity in that berth by 140%. At the opening ceremony, Governor Carlos Massa Ratinho Junior also signed the contract for rock removal works to increase the draft, and authorized private investments of R$ 117.7 million to expand sugar exports from Paraná. He also authorized the initial loading of grain into a Liberian ship using the two new ship loaders installed in berth 201.

“Rock removal will allow ships arriving at the port to leave with heavier loads. Along with other modernization projects, such as the expansion of the grain export corridor, we will expand the capacity for the next 30 years to meet the growth in demand for Brazilian agribusiness”, he said.

In the eight months, between January and August of this year, 11.15 million tons of soybeans were shipped through the export corridor of the Port of Paranaguá, a volume 5.1% higher than the soybeans exported during all of 2019. Until the month of July, 21.8 million tons of products were exported through the terminal, an increase of 14% over the same period last year.

Expansion of the mooring pier

The mooring pier expansion will allow the Port of Paranaguá to receive larger ships holding up to 80 thousand tons of gross cargo in the Post Panamax category. In addition to Paraná, the project benefits agricultural exports from the states of Mato Grosso do Sul, São Paulo, Santa Catarina, and Paraguay.

Berth 201 also received a new electromechanical structure, including two new ship loaders handling 2,000 tons/hour. As a result, the annual handling capacity will rise from the current 2 million tons of grain to 6 million tons of grain.

Rock Removal

The governor signed the contract and the service order for the submarine demolition works of the rock mass known as Pedra da Palangana. The removal of the material will allow the deepening of the access channel to 14.60 meters. With this, the port of Paraná guarantees greater navigation safety and will avoid accidents and become more competitive.

The works will start in four months and will be fully funded by Portos do Paraná, which is investing R$ 23.2 million in services. The estimated gain is 1 meter, the equivalent of over 7,000 tons of bulk or 120 extra containers per ship.

Private investments

Ratinho Junior also signed the authorization for the company Paraná Operações Portuárias (PASA) to invest R$ 117.7 million in its complex in the port. The service order is based on the renewal of the lease that was signed at the end of August.

The contract is valid until 2049 and foresees an increase in the capacity of the terminal, which will increase from 3.6 million tons/year to 6.7 million tons/year. For this, new equipment will be installed and a new warehouse will be built.

During the first phase, which should be completed by February 2022, PASA will build a new shipping line and install a new ship loader able to handle up to 2,500 tons/hour. The second phase, until February 2023, foresees the construction of a new warehouse to store 60,000 tons of sugar or 45,000 tons of other solid bulk.

“This will expand our sugar export capacity to 7 million tons per year, making the Port of Paranaguá a major exporter of sugar and other products,” said Miguel Rubens Tranin, president of the Association of Bioenergy Producers in the state of Paraná (ALCOPAR), whose member companies use the terminal.

According to him, there was a 20% increase in sugar production during this harvest compared to the previous one, with about 2 million tons of sugar, 80% of which was exported through the Port of Paranaguá. “Brazil is the world’s largest sugar producer and accounts for 50% of what is sold worldwide, supplying markets such as the Middle East, Russia, and China,” he said.

Sharing is caring!