Port of Itajaí ‘will not be controlled by companies,’ says Minister Márcio França

The Federal Government will review the privatization of the Port of Itajaí, based on the Northern coast of Santa Catarina state, despite the TCU audit court’s recent seal of approval to continue the process.

Currently, the port authority for the Port of Itajaí is in the hands of the municipal administration, as it has been since 1997. The concession contract, due to expire in December 2022, was extended for up to two years due to delays in the port privatization.

“Thus, the pace in which modernization works will be implemented and investments enacted will be even greater thanks to the priority the new Federal Government gives to the ports,” says the minister.

The terminal’s privatization plan foresees investments of around R$ 920 million in the first three years of the concession. The Ministry of Ports and Airports is still evaluating the best way to ensure that the necessary investments in the Port of Itajaí are met, either directly or through partnerships with the private sector.

Port aims to attract container lines

APM Terminals, which manages the port’s private berths, is working on attracting the container lines lost between December 2022 and January this year. One of the new lines, from Panama, started operating in February.

The liner routes foresee berthings in three Brazilian ports and others in Latin America. Among the cargoes hauled, there are food products and reefer items.

Please see below a chart displaying the Port of Itajaí’s container movement from Jan 2019 to Dec 2022. The data is from DataLiner.

Container movement – Itajaí | Jan 2019 – Dec 2022 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

Working group

The city hall of Itajaí created a working group to deal with the port’s situation and demand agility in the privatization process. The working group includes representatives of unions linked to port workers, business associations, city councilors, and other municipal authorities.

“We need to unite for the good of the Port of Itajaí. In this group, we will create a proposal, which is the fruit of a consensus between the city government, associations, unions, and the Itajai community. Our intention is to ask the Federal government to expedite the terminal auction so that port operations are more secure and we can resume port growth,” said Itajaí Mayor Volnei Morastoni.

Source: ND Mais

To read the original news report, visit: https://ndmais.com.br/economia/autoridade-do-porto-de-itajai-nao-sera-exercida-por-empresas-diz-ministro-marcio-franca/

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