Vports Initiates Licensing Process for New Port in Aracruz

Vports, the concessionaire responsible for managing the Vitória Port Complex, has begun the environmental licensing process with Iema (Espírito Santo’s State Institute for the Environment) to develop a port in Barra do Riacho, Aracruz. The application was submitted on April 30, and the preliminary license is expected to be issued by mid-2026. While regulatory procedures move forward, the company’s executives engage with potential clients. Vports, which took over management from Codesa in October 2022, controls a 522,000 m² area for development and a 300,000 m² space that, by 2033, will host Transpetro’s Barra do Riacho Waterway Terminal, focused on gas handling.

“We submitted to Iema a master plan for a multipurpose port, meaning it will accommodate energy operations, liquid bulk, ship decommissioning, and even containers. The plan is to license a basic project and adjust as business opportunities are confirmed. The investment decision—long under discussion—has now been made, and the licensing process should accelerate everything,” said Gustavo Serrão, CEO of Vports.

This licensing request marks another strategic move by Vports to secure its position in Barra do Riacho, which is rapidly becoming the largest port hub in the state—and one of the largest in Brazil. The area already includes Portocel, Porto do Imetame, Transpetro’s operations, and the site that has yet to be developed by Vports. Earlier in 2025, the company completed dredging works in the access channel used by the Barra do Riacho Waterway Terminal and Portocel.

With Vports’ concession running until 2033, the company is evaluating how to utilize the entire area fully. “We have a strategic site in one of Brazil’s most important emerging port hubs. The concept is a multipurpose terminal that can specialize based on market demand. Initial ideas, such as thermal power plants and ship decommissioning, remain in the conceptual design submitted to Iema,” Serrão added.

Source: A Gazeta

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