Recently, the port sector was buzzing with the consultation and public hearing held by the National Waterway Transport Agency (ANTAQ) to discuss the leasing of the Santos 10 container terminal (Tecon Santos 10), which promises to be the largest auction in the country’s port history.
This is a project that has been seen as important by the Federal Government, as it aims to expand capacity and modernize port operations, with a forecast 50% increase in the TEU (“Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit”, a standard unit of measurement used to quantify the capacity of container ships and terminals, representing the volume of a 20-foot container) handling capacity at the port of Santos.
The multipurpose terminal, for both containers and general cargo, will occupy a total area of 622,000 square meters in the Saboó region, on the right bank of the Port of Santos. Among the planned infrastructures are a linear quay for four berths and a road flow regulation yard, compatible with the expected truck traffic. This is because the estimated annual capacity is 3.5 million TEUs and 11,000 tons of general cargo.
The satellite photo below shows the area subject to the lease.
SOURCE: Infra S.A./ANTAQ
According to the project, total CAPEX is estimated at BRL 4.22 billion, encompassing the development of the terminal, construction of buildings, the main equipment required for operation, as well as the berthing system itself. OPEX, in turn, has an estimated average cost of BRL 491 million per year.
The revenue estimated by the project is reflected in the value of the contract itself, which provides for a global value of BRL 44,438,907,000, corresponding to the estimated amount of revenue to be obtained by the lessee in exploring the activities during the term of the contract.
As stated, this is a port lease agreement with a term of 25 years, extendable up to 70 years.
The table below shows some project numbers.
SOURCE: Infra S.A./ANTAQ
The lessee’s remuneration, in turn, will be given freely, without setting prices for the provision of services related to cargo handling and storage operations in the lease, and ANTAQ may establish the amounts charged by the lessee to users, in order to prevent any abuse of economic power, through prior administrative procedure, in which it may request and use information provided by interested parties.
The selection criteria for the tender will be the highest concession fee to be paid to the port authority for the onerous transfer of the lease area. In addition, the contract also provides for the payment of monthly rent (Fixed Lease Value), as well as a variable installment per TEUs handled (Variable Lease Value).
With the public consultation complete, the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU) is now awaiting its opinion. In any case, the final notice is expected to be published in September 2025.
