Port of Santos auction: gov’t drawn to allowing terminals to bid in consortiums

The Brazilian government wants to amend the rules of the privatization of the Port of Santos to allow cargo terminal operators to form consortiums and jointly bid, without limits, provided each company represents up to 5% of the consortium. Thus, granted this permission, the 20 companies that manage activities in the port could form groups to dispute the tender.

The idea was confirmed by the Minister of Infrastructure, Marcelo Sampaio, who reaffirmed the expectation of holding the auction in 2022 in the second half of December.

The new rule would not exclude the arrangement initially envisaged by the government, which allows terminals and other operators, such as railways, to be part of the consortium with a more significant individual stake, up to 15%, but with a joint limitation of 40%.

“We are looking for people with subject knowledge,” said the minister, referring to companies already in the port. For example, big names in shipping and the pulp and grain sectors command the activities in the harbor. The largest port complex in Latin America, Santos, has more than 50 terminals.

See below the track record of exports and imports of containers at the Port of Santos from January 2019 to June 2022. The data comes from the DataLiner service developed by Datamar.

Container throughput at the Port of Santos | Jan 2019 – Jun 2022 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

Asked if the new option could not give excess power to a future consortium formed by lessees, Sampaio said that the National Waterway Transportation Agency (Antaq) could moderate eventual conflicts.

The minister also reaffirmed the government’s intention to submit the privatization proposal this month for analysis by the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU), with the expectation of publishing the final public notice in October and holding the auction in the last week of December.

According to him, most of the studies are already in Court, albeit informally. The case is under the rapporteurship of Minister Bruno Dantas, classified by Sampaio as a “partner interested [in making the privatization lauch].”

Source: CNN Brasil

To read the full original article, please go to: https://www.cnnbrasil.com.br/business/governo-quer-incentivar-participacao-de-terminais-em-oferta-do-porto-de-santos/

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