Santos and Las Palmas Ports Explore Partnership

The Santos Port Authority (APS) hosted a delegation from the Port Authority of Las Palmas, a significant and strategic port located in the Canary Islands, Spain, on September 26th. APS President Anderson Pomini and Beatriz Calzada Ojeda, President of the Port Authority of Las Palmas, authorized studies to establish agreements and partnerships between the two ports.

Las Palmas, the largest multipurpose port in the mid-Atlantic and Spain, has a draft ranging from 30 to 50 meters, is located near the coast of Morocco, and is 2,000 kilometers from the Iberian Peninsula. It serves as a gateway to Europe and Africa. President Beatriz Ojeda reported that with the security crisis in the Red Sea, the movement of Las Palmas has increased by 40%.

Ojeda also noted the expectation that Las Palmas will be included in new shipping routes for vessels coming from Brazil, as it is a shorter route, reducing carbon emissions. There is also the advantage of Las Palmas having a tradition of sending cargo to Africa, mainly food and humanitarian aid. She stated that there is an average loss of 30% of cargo related to donations when transportation is not carried out by specialists in serving the African continent.

The Las Palmas delegation also highlighted the advantages for Brazilian companies wishing to establish themselves in the archipelago, which consists of eight islands and has two million inhabitants.

The growing consumer market in Africa has attracted companies from various countries to the Canaries. Taxes charged in continental Europe are around 25%, while in the Canaries, considered a Free Zone, they are around 4%. The Port of Las Palmas receives three million cruise passengers per year. However, considering all the islands of the archipelago, the Canaries have a total of 18 million visitors per year.

The Port Authority of Las Palmas is responsible for five ports and two marinas on the island of Gran Canaria. Fuels, fruits, and fish are among the main cargoes handled. Las Palmas handles 1.2 million TEUs per year and serves 510 ports in 135 countries. It also has significant infrastructure for ship repairs, with shipyards serving the oil industry and other sectors.

President Anderson Pomini gave a presentation on the investment and expansion plans for the Port of Santos, also addressing decarbonization projects and partnerships already underway between Santos and the ports of Barcelona, Valencia, and Algeciras in continental Spain.

There was an exchange of gifts and plaques between the two ports. The meeting was attended by the directors of Administration and Finance, Júlio Cezar Alves de Oliveira; Operations, Beto Mendes; and Business Development and Regulation, Gustavo Pereira. The Las Palmas delegation, which also visited the Port of Santos on a boat trip through the navigation channel, included director Francisco Javier Trujillo Ramírez; Chief of Staff Angélica Muñoz Redondo; Luis Padilla Macabeo, director of Relations with Africa; Bernardino Santana Rivero, advisor of Boluda and Suárez; and Alexandre Bolson, a Brazilian/Spanish lawyer and advisor to Las Palmas for Brazilian Affairs.

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