Mato Grosso producers have already exported 6.2 million tons of soybeans and 1.3 million corn in the first quarter, and about 50% of this total has been shipped through the ports of the so-called Arco Norte. Improvements in logistics, such as the completion of the paving of the BR-163, and the reduction in freight prices influenced the progress. “The trend is that in 2020, for the first time, we will register half of the grains being exported from the north and half from the south,” Daniel Latorraca, superintendent of the Mato Grosso Institute of Agricultural Economics (Imea), told Valor. In 2019, 45% of MT grain shipments went through Northern ports. The expected increase in participation is equivalent to 3 million tons. The gain of the producer, according to Latorraca, is in the lower cost of transportation through the North in relation to the ports in the Southeast and South. Barcarena and Santarém, in Pará, are the most used, with 2.2 million tons of soy and January corn. to March. The superintendent of Imea says that the completion of the BR-163 tossed the prices of road freight down at the beginning of the harvest. The values fell from more than R $ 200 per ton to R $ 170 between Sorriso (MT) and Miritituba (PA). Today, with the impacts of the pandemic of the new coronavirus, the value has risen to R $ 186, still far from the peaks motivated by the risks of puddles on the way to the ports. On the other hand, the dependence on ports in the Southeast and South continues to be large due to the arrival of imported fertilizers – hence the importance of the new terminal in Itaqui (see above). “Return freight is poorly established in the northern ports. We received a lot of fertilizer from Santos and Paranaguá ”. About 42 million tons of soybeans and corn are expected to be exported through the ports of Arco Norte in 2020, 10 million more than two years ago. The calculation includes the production of Mato Grosso and Matopiba. The coordinator of the Pro-Logistics Movement, Edeon Vaz, says that the “great turning point” for the flow of grains and the arrival of inputs from the North can still occur with the construction and expansion of the railways, such as the awaited Ferrogrão in Mato Grosso. Another challenge is to make the axis more profitable for the producer. According to him, despite reducing the distances in relation to the ports in the South, the farmer has not yet felt any reflections in his pocket. “In the case of fertilizers, the gain can be direct, the producer will have better control over the value. In the grain, this margin is staying with the trading company, we are still unable to capture this value ”. The cost of sending soy produced in the region of Sorriso to China through the port of Paranaguá is double what the farmers in the United States and Argentina pay. On average, foreigners pay $ 57 and $ 56 per ton, respectively. Brazilians even pay US $ 110.
Source: Valor Economico / Portos e Navios