Billion-real investment in railways expected to double cargo arrivals at the Port of Santos

The Development and Zoning Plan of the Porto de Santos foresees an increase in transported cargo (Alexsander Ferraz/AT)

With the R\$ 3.8-billion investment in the Malha Sudeste, cargo flow to the Santos quay is expected to rise over the coming decades. According to the Autoridade Portuária de Santos (APS), the goal is to increase transported cargo capacity via the rail modal by 45 million tons over 20 years, which would double the current figure.

The Malha Sudeste, one of Brazil’s main freight railway networks, connects the states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo to the ports of Santos and Itaguaí (RJ). The Malha Sudeste concession contract was renegotiated with concessionaire MRS and signed on the 18th at the Tribunal de Contas da União (TCU).

The multibillion-real investment will focus on improving operational efficiency and freight transport along the network. The formalization of the agreement results from a consensual solution approved by the TCU, involving the Ministério dos Transportes, the Agência Nacional de Transportes Terrestres (ANTT), the Associação Nacional dos Transportadores Ferroviários (ANTF), and MRS Logística.

The renegotiation adds approximately R\$ 2.8 billion in concession fees to be paid by the concessionaire, contributing to contractual rebalance and to the execution of the investment plan. Contacted for comment, MRS did not respond.

Porto de Santos In a statement, APS reported that the expansion of the railway network was already part of the Porto de Santos growth plan. To accommodate increased cargo demand, APS granted the concession of the Ferrovia Interna do Porto de Santos (Fips) about two years ago.

“The objective is to meet the projection of the Plano de Desenvolvimento e Zoneamento do Porto de Santos (PDZ), for an increase of approximately 45 million tons in cargo transported via the rail modal over the next 20 years (rising from the current 45 million to around 90 million), with the rail modal’s share in the Port’s cargo flow increasing from 33% to 40%”, it states.

In addition to this expansion of the internal rail network, APS notes that it has submitted to the Federal Government a proposal to expand the Porto Organizado area, which would increase the port area by up to 164% in the coming decades — rising from the current 7.8 million square meters of dry operational area to more than 20 million square meters — incorporating areas in Cubatão, São Vicente and Bertioga, as well as Santos and Guarujá.

APS states that the areas offered to the market will be able to meet the growing increase in cargo handling and the country’s own development needs.

Terminals must invest at the same pace Port consultant Ivam Jardim, director at Agência Porto Consultoria, stresses that modernization carried out by terminals is a decisive factor for increasing the rail modal’s share and enabling the Port of Santos to operate at a higher performance level.

He cites the example of the grain sector and a terminal that implemented a new rail yard designed to receive longer train sets, increasing operational capacity. “This expansion allows higher train turnover, regularity in flow, and reduced dwell time of train sets on the track”, Jardim states.

Jardim highlights recent works in the pulp sector, accommodating more rail lines and allowing the simultaneous reception of longer and heavier trains, increasing the operators’ rail window.

The consultant explains that modernization is also advancing in the export corridor. According to him, some terminals have invested in modern rail-reception systems.

“Notably, the adoption of equipment that moves wagons to the hoppers (funnel-shaped equipment used to receive and transfer solid bulk) and subsequently routes empty wagons to return lines, increasing productivity and eliminating maneuver bottlenecks”, Jardim highlights.

A critical network Port consultant Rodrigo Paiva, from Graf Infra Consulting, states that without investments, the rail modal would reach saturation in the short term, since usage of existing capacity exceeds 90%.

“Investments in the Malha Sudeste tend to eliminate railway bottlenecks before reaching the Port, especially in urban-conflict zones, operational improvements, new yards, and fleet renewal. These investments are essential”, Paiva says.