Talks between Santos Port Authority and Bertioga Mayor focus on Itatinga power plant

The President of the Santos Port Authority (APS), Anderson Pomini, and the Mayor of Bertioga, Caio Matheus, engaged in talks on Thursday (March 21st) to define a set of actions aimed at enhancing and better utilizing the historic Itatinga Hydroelectric Power Plant, which is 113 years old and still operational, producing 15 megawatts of energy.

Moreover, the power plant serves as an environmental and historical asset, preserving buildings, machinery, and memories of generations that resided and worked in the unit located in Bertioga. It’s worth noting that the Port of Santos is the only port globally with its own hydroelectric plant.

The mayor expressed enthusiastic interest in engaging in APS initiatives, highlighting their alignment with his administration’s goals and the needs of the Bertioga population. Pomini discussed the project aimed at enhancing energy generation from the plant, emphasizing the potential to produce over 20 megawatts, along with Green Hydrogen derived from the existing resources. Presently, there is an excess of 8 megawatts.

The generation of Green Hydrogen aims to serve ships, such as cruise and dredging vessels, which emit CO2 but could switch to using non-polluting fuel while at the Port of Santos. The engineer and Utilities manager of APS, Rafael Apolinário, presented to the mayor the advantages of producing Green Hydrogen and even using the surplus electricity to supply neighborhoods in Bertioga.

Pomini elaborated that APS plans to issue a call for companies interested in engaging in a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to enhance the plant’s capacity, as well as for environmental preservation and the utilization of the site for tourism.

The mayor noted that many families who have lived and worked in Itatinga are interested in revisiting the site.

The Secretary of Tourism and Culture of Bertioga, Ney Carlos da Rocha, and the Secretary of Finance and Administration, Miriam Cajazeira Diniz, who attended the meeting, also showed enthusiasm for APS projects. Technicians from the Municipality and APS will work together to enhance Bertioga’s participation in the initiatives to improve the plant.

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