Pilotage drove the largest bulk carrier ever moored in the Amazon. The CSSC Amsterdam – 255 meters long and 43 meters wide (breadth) – is about to load 83,700 tons of corn in Santarém (PA). The cargo will be exported to Portugal. The Baby-cape class vessel from Nansha (China) anchored in Macapá (AP). Once, only Handysize class vessels, up to 203 meters long and 32 meters wide, with a loading capacity of 55 thousand tons, could get into the region of Amapá. However, investments in pilotage, which regularly surveys the depths of the region’s rivers and the tides of the Amazon River, made the safe operation of this kind of vessels possible. In Amazon, sand banks move silently under the water, causing stranding, this is the reason why this kind of work is important. In addition, the Northern Bar of the Amazon River has a shallow, muddy stretch that limits the draft. The study on tides in the area can expand the passage for more loaded vessels.
Source: www.praticagemdobrasil.org.br
*Translated by Ia Niani