Santos-Guarujá Tunnel: Port Authority wants ownership of the project and will make demands to the São Paulo State Government

The Santos Port Authority (APS) is preparing a series of demands to be submitted to the state government for inclusion in the bidding notice for the Santos-Guarujá immersed tunnel. One of them is the claim of ownership over the construction. The dry connection auction is scheduled for September 5 at the São Paulo Stock Exchange (B3).

According to APS president Anderson Pomini, the first demand will be guarantees of minimal impact on port operations. “The tunnel has a dual nature—it is an infrastructure project for urban mobility, connecting point A to point B, but also linking both sides of the Port. So, the first requirement is that there be as little disruption as possible to operations, rail lines, perimeter roads, and the navigation channel,” explained the head of the Port’s management company.

In addition, APS will request ownership of the tunnel from the State Government. “We want it to be clearly stated in the bidding notice that the construction of the tunnel will become the property of the Port Authority. We (the Federal and State governments) will carry out the project—the State will lead the concession—but at the end of the concession period, ownership will be transferred to the Santos Port Authority. In fact, we will hold meetings in the coming days (with the State) to ensure this is included in the bidding document,” Pomini added.

Santos-Guarujá Tunnel
Recently, the Santos-Guarujá tunnel project underwent revisions in response to suggestions from international companies, and a new bidding notice was published in the Official Gazette of the State of São Paulo on October 10th. The changes increased the project cost from R$5.96 billion to R$6.8 billion. The Federal Government and the State Government of São Paulo will equally fund the investment. The international bidding process, under a public-private partnership (PPP) model, will grant the winning bidder a 30-year contract for construction, operation, and maintenance of the project. Due to the changes, the auction was rescheduled from August 1 to September 5 at the B3 in São Paulo.

With a total length of 1.5 kilometers—870 meters of which will run beneath the estuary channel—the tunnel will feature three lanes in each direction, including two for cars, buses, and trucks and one dedicated to a Light Rail Vehicle (LRV), as well as a gallery for pedestrians and cyclists. Currently, the connection between Santos and Guarujá is made via ferries and small boats, which transport over 21,000 vehicles, 7,700 cyclists, and 7,600 pedestrians per day. The project is expected to generate around 9,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Source: A Tribuna

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