Minister Silvio Costa Filho Announces August Auction for Access Channel to the Port of Paranaguá

On Friday, June 6, in France, Brazil’s Minister of Ports and Airports, Silvio Costa Filho, announced that the auction for the access channel to the Port of Paranaguá (PR) will be held in August. Paranaguá is the second-largest port in Brazil and Latin America, after the Port of Santos. On Monday, the Ministry of Ports and Airports (MPor) will submit the technical documentation to the National Waterway Transportation Agency (Antaq), formally requesting that the auction be scheduled.

“This partnership is very healthy for Brazil. It will be a milestone for the Brazilian port sector, as we will carry out the first auction of a public port’s access channel, which could reach BRL 1 billion,” said Costa Filho. The minister is currently in Paris, accompanying President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on an official visit to France, where he is also holding bilateral meetings with business leaders to present Brazil’s investment portfolio.

Costa Filho stated that the Paranaguá auction would serve as a model for other access channel auctions planned for later this year, including those for the ports of Santos (SP), Itajaí (SC), and Bahia. “This will provide predictability for the productive sector, particularly in the development of the Brazilian port system,” he added.

With the auction, the draft depth of the channel will be increased from 13.5 meters to 15.5 meters, enhancing the port’s capacity to receive larger vessels and increasing cargo throughput. Currently, the port handles 2,600 ships per year, with a strong focus on solid bulk cargo, such as soybeans and animal protein. The concession will also improve operational efficiency by enabling more ships to access the port.

“The concession will elevate the Port of Paranaguá to a new level in international trade, and we are highly confident in this auction model, which will certainly attract strong competition,” said MPor’s National Secretary of Ports, Alex Ávila.

He explained that each additional centimeter in channel depth allows for an extra 60 tons of cargo in a ship’s hold. “Raising the depth to 15.5 meters will bring substantial gains, not only in scale due to the increased number of vessels but also in operational capacity,” he added.

The concession is also expected to boost regional development, as increased cargo movement at the port will have positive economic impacts on neighboring municipalities and contribute to job and income generation across the surrounding region and the state.

Source: Informativo dos Portos

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