December 2020 was a very good month for Companhia das Docas do Estado da Bahia (CODEBA). The ports of Salvador, Aratu-Candeias, and Ilhéus registered a 31.5% increase in the volume of cargo handled in relation to the same period in 2019. The port registered 1,095,054 tons handled, the best December ever recorded in the company’s history. The cumulative volume handled in 2020, released in a company report, proves the economic stability of the Ports of Bahia despite the adverse international pandemic scenario. The Port of Salvador closed the 2020 trade balance at 5,197,659 tons; an increase of 1.28%, compared to 2019. Contributing to the result was the 23.53% increase in general cargo (oversized cargo, rice, wheat, and rubber), and the 4.81% increase in solid bulk. Also worthy of mention is the export of pulp (40,202 tons). The Port of Aratu-Candeias, predominantly an import port, imported 6,118,026 tons in 2020. The report with the consolidated data, released by CODEBA, shows that more than half of the imports of liquid bulk, about 70%, were from NAFTA, an important input for the Petrochemical Complex of Camaçari. In exports, the highlights were EBTE (22,537 tons) and Butadiene (20,551 tons). Throughout 2020, the Port of Ilhéus maintained its sustainable upward trend, registering an increase of 118.46% in the movement of general cargo and solid bulk. The handling of soybeans and nickel accounts for the 291.59% increase in the handling of solid bulk.
Source: Datamar News