Port of Paranaguá access channel to be auctioned this Wednesday

In an innovative and unprecedented move in Brazil, the Access Channel of the Port of Paranaguá will be auctioned this Wednesday (22). The bidding process will select the company required to invest R$ 1.23 billion in the first five years of a 25-year concession contract.

The auction will take place at Brazil’s stock exchange, B3, in São Paulo, under the responsibility of the National Waterway Transport Agency (ANTAQ). The winning concessionaire will be responsible for deepening the channel, allowing the Port of Paranaguá to increase its draft from the current 13.3 meters (the distance between the lowest point of a vessel and the water surface) to 15.5 meters.

“An additional two meters of draft represents, on average, one thousand more containers on a ship or 14 thousand tonnes more of a product per vessel — without users paying extra for it. Depending on the outcome of the auction, we may even see lower prices than what is charged today,” explained Luiz Fernando Garcia, CEO of Portos do Paraná.

Competing companies must offer discounts on the Inframar fee, which ships pay to access the ports. Expectations are for a reduction of up to 12.63% compared with the current rate. This fee covers dredging costs necessary to ensure safe vessel maneuvers. Currently, this maintenance is handled by the Port Authority, but after the auction, the responsibility will transfer to the winning bidder.

The concessionaire will only receive the full Inframar tariff — and be allowed to request gradual adjustments — once it completes the improvement milestones established in the bidding notice and concession contract. The investment plan also includes hydrographic studies, dredging, rock removal, signaling, and other maintenance and modernization actions for the Port of Paranaguá’s Access Channel.

ANTAQ will oversee the concession, while Portos do Paraná will define guidelines and provide strategic port management. The Federal Audit Court (TCU) approved the auction process in March, through Ruling 881/2025. According to the Ministry of Ports and Airports, the criteria defined for the Paranaguá auction will serve as a model for future access channel concessions in Santos (SP), Itajaí (SC), Bahia, and Rio Grande (RS).

Access Channel
Located south of Ilha do Mel, the Access Channel — part of which is known as the Galheta Channel — has been the main waterway access route to the port and terminals of Paranaguá Bay since the 1970s, when increasing demand for larger vessels required dredging of the Galheta Bank and the subsequent creation of the channel.

Source: Portos do Paraná

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