São Francisco do Sul Posts New Cargo Throughput Record with 34% YoY Surge

Up 34% from 2022, cargo throughput at the Port of São Francisco do Sul reached 16.9 million tonnes in 2023. This result marks a historical record for the port in northern Santa Catarina, higher even than the 13.6 million tonnes in 2021, the previous best performance.

December Surge

Cargo throughput in December 2023 stood at 1.6 million tonnes, the second-best month of the year, trailing behind August (1.8 million).

The figures achieved in December show a 71% increase from the same month in 2022 (938 thousand tons). Thus, the total cargo throughput for 2023 (16.9 million tons) exceeded 2022 by 34% (12.6 million).

According to the Port’s President, Cleverton Vieira, this achievement was made possible by a combination of factors, cementing the Port of São Francisco as the largest port terminal in Santa Catarina. “We can explain it by mentioning public investments, made with the port’s own revenue, for the acquisition and refurbishment of equipment – road and rail scales and ship loaders – maintenance of internal vehicle circulation routes, and the opening of a new access gate, with three fully automated scales.”

He also mentioned the professionalization of the staff, with the consolidation of the integrated management system based on ISO 9001 and 14001 certifications, as well as the newly obtained permission to export corn to China and the start of the bidding process for rock dredging at the dock.

Export Surplus

Exports accounted for 60% of the movement recorded at the port in 2023, approximately 10.2 million tons. The highest volumes handled during the year were grains, with 9.6 million tons (soybeans, 5 million, and corn, 4.6 million), followed by vegetable oil (250 thousand liters) and wood (196 thousand tons). Imports reached 6.7 million tons, with a focus on steel coils and bars (3.5 million) and fertilizers (2.8 million).

See below the Port of Sao Francisco do Sul’s exports and imports measured in tonnes between Jan 2019 and Oct 2023. The data is from DataLiner.

São Francisco do Sul | Exports & Imports | Jan 2019 – Oct 2023 | WTMT

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

Steady Growth

Since the beginning of 2023 and month after month, the increase in cargo throughput compared to the previous year has been uninterrupted. In January, for example, it was 46% higher than the same month in 2022, as well as in May (+48%) and November (+35%).

President Cleverton Vieira also highlights the crucial role of the São Francisco community in achieving the highest throughput ever. “Without the dedication and professionalism of outsourced port workers, SCPar employees, port operators, as well as the terminal lessee Tesc, driver cooperatives, and intervening agencies, it would not have been possible to achieve such significant numbers in 2023.”

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