Logistics complex in Cubatão expected to shorten truck routes to the Port of Santos

APS has signed a 35-year contract for the use of the 412,500-square-meter greenfield site next to the Mário Covas Viaduct, in Cubatão (Alexsander Ferraz/AT)

The development of a logistics complex for trucks on Ilha do Tatu, near Ilha Caraguatá, in Cubatão, is expected to reduce the distance traveled by trucks descending the mountain range via the Anchieta Highway toward the terminals on the Right Bank of the Port of Santos from 15 kilometers to four kilometers.

The estimate is included in the Environmental Impact Study and Report (EIA-Rima) submitted to the São Paulo State Environmental Company (Cetesb) by Condilog Operações, the winning bidder, to obtain the project's environmental license. The application is currently under review by the state agency.

According to the document, the three truck staging yards currently accredited by the Santos Port Authority (APS) are located on the Left Bank. As a result, vehicles must travel approximately 15 km (round trip) along the Cônego Domênico Rangoni Highway (SP-055). With the new development, the route will be reduced to approximately 4 km via the Anchieta-Imigrantes Link Road. The change is intended to regulate and redistribute vehicles across the road network, easing traffic on the Cônego Domênico Rangoni Highway.

The company refers to the project as Complexo Logístico Tatu (CLT). It will be located on a greenfield site next to the junction connecting the Anchieta and Imigrantes highways. The 412,500-square-meter property lies within the Port of Santos' official boundaries.

The project was designed to accommodate projected growth in truck traffic from 8,000 to as many as 18,000 vehicles per day heading toward the Port of Santos' waterfront by 2060. The cargo handled will include vegetable bulk solids, mineral bulk solids, containers and general cargo.

According to the justification presented by the company, the facility “will no longer represent merely an operational improvement, but will become a necessary condition for organizing logistics flows, expanding the capacity to support port operations and ensuring that investments in terminals, land access routes and other strategic infrastructure are fully utilized.”

Investment and schedule

According to the EIA-Rima, total investment is estimated at approximately R\$ 1.492 billion — a figure that stands out because it represents about half of the R\$ 3 billion previously projected by APS. The amount includes measures to mitigate environmental impacts and costs related to environmental licensing.

The construction period is expected to last 36 months, with up to 400 workers employed at the peak of construction. The document prioritizes hiring local labor, particularly from Cubatão, Santos and São Vicente, in partnership with municipal governments and professional associations. It also provides for emissions-control measures, including equipment maintenance and the prioritization of machinery fitted with cleaner technologies.

Land use

Condilog plans to allocate 97 m² to warehouses and administrative buildings within the logistics complex. The facility will include a container yard with 1,999 parking spaces, built on a pile-supported pavement designed to withstand the movement of large volumes of cargo; a truck staging yard with 845 spaces; and support areas for truck drivers.

The complex will also feature an intra-port parking area with 593 spaces, an administrative building and complementary infrastructure, including a fuel station and support facilities. This structure will subsequently be transferred to APS. Access to the complex will be provided through two gates, one of which will be reserved exclusively for vehicles bound for the CLT arriving via the Anchieta-Imigrantes Link Road.

Vegetation clearance

The development of Complexo Logístico Tatu (CLT) will require the removal of 456,000 m² of native vegetation and 313,800 m² of mangrove forest, as well as interventions in built-up areas and water bodies. According to the project's Environmental Impact Study (EIA), interventions in Permanent Preservation Areas (APPs) will total nearly 500,000 m².

These figures underpin the municipality's opposition to the project. In a technical statement submitted to the São Paulo State Environmental Company (Cetesb), opposing the installation of the complex, the Municipal Department of Environment, Climate Security and Animal Welfare (Semam-SCB) and the Municipal Environmental Council of Cubatão state that “Ilha do Tatu must be considered an integral part of a highly significant estuarine system, whose conservation is linked to the preservation of mangroves, native vegetation and the ecological processes that shape the coastal landscape of Cubatão and Baixada Santista.”

The municipal government's report highlights the risk to the scarlet ibis, the city's emblematic bird and one of the species of greatest scientific importance in the area. “The functionality of the habitat depends on the integrity of the range of environments used by the birds, including mangroves, tidal channels, mudflats, shallow-water areas, feeding grounds and roosting sites (...). Alterations to any of these components may change the availability of food, shelter and breeding and resting sites”, the municipal opinion adds.

Environmental mitigation and compensation

In response, the EIA submitted to Cetesb establishes programs for the rescue, salvage, conservation and monitoring of fauna and flora. The document provides for an environmental compensation payment of R\$ 7.160 million, to be allocated to the Serra do Mar and Xixová-Japuí State Parks. The study also cites compensation through the designation of an equivalent area of 2.2 million m² of native vegetation, of which at least 1.9 million m² will consist of mangroves.

“Due to the presence of a thick layer of soft soil at the development site, robust foundations will be used, and these will need to be reassessed based on geotechnical studies and design guidelines”, the study states. The project also includes a drainage network designed to direct the volume of water generated throughout the complex into the Casqueiro River.

Regarding energy and operations, “the lighting system throughout the complex will use high-efficiency LED technology, with occupancy sensors and automatic activation based on ambient light levels, reducing energy consumption during operating hours.” The EIA also specifies that “the installation of a photovoltaic power generation system on the roofs of warehouses and administrative buildings will be assessed, with a view to partially generating electricity on-site, reducing dependence on the public grid and lowering associated emissions.”

Three truck yards

In addition to Ilha do Tatu, the Santos Port Authority (APS) package includes two other logistics complexes. On the Right Bank, in Santos, a 20-year paid concession agreement has already been signed with the Portlog consortium to develop a facility on Avenida Augusto Barata, between Alemoa and Saboó.

The project will occupy 242,000 square meters (m²) and feature a truck staging yard with an initial capacity of 400 spaces, expandable to 530, as well as services and a rest area for drivers. The company will pay APS R\$ 289,000 per month starting in the 36th month. The project is the subject of a legal dispute with the Brazilian Association of Container Terminals (Abratec) and has been suspended.

On the Left Bank, in Guarujá, the logistics complex will be built in the Conceiçãozinha neighborhood, in Vicente de Carvalho. The tender was won by the Marlog-Petrasalis Logística consortium, and the project remains in the implementation phase.