The Santos Port Authority (SPA) plans to increase the depth of the shipping channel at the Port of Santos within the next five years. The idea is that the works will allow the port to soon receive ships with drafts of up to 14.5 meters without the need to wait for high tide. The plan was announced by Bruno Stupello, the director of business development and regulation at the state-owned company. “In our view, it could be done in two stages, the second being arriving at a depth of 17 meters. But for the short term, we would increase the depth to 16 meters, gaining one meter of draft. And then we would be able to enter at 14.5 meters without depending on the tide. This gives us a very large productivity gain, especially for container terminals”, said the executive. Today, the Port of Santos is authorized to receive ships of up to 366 meters in length. However, they have a draft restriction and, in addition to not being able to use their full cargo-carrying capacity, they need to wait for high tide windows to enter or leave the Santos wharf. The authorization of the Brazilian Navy provides for these vessels to travel with a maximum of 14.2 meters of draft.
Sources: A Tribuna/Datamar News