Port of Santos handles over 15 million tons of cargo in one month

From january to august of this year, the Santos complex has already reached 121.5 million tons (AT Archive)

The Port Authority of Santos (APS) announced on Tuesday (24) a new report regarding cargo movement at the Santos port. In August, the complex handled 15.9 million tons, despite 116 hours of navigation being suspended due to fog. From January to August this year, the complex has reached a total of 121.5 million tons.

According to the state-owned company responsible for managing the Port of Santos, with one quarter remaining until the end of 2024, the Port of Santos has already surpassed the total movement of eight years ago. In 2016, 113.8 million tons of cargo entered and left the Santos docks. The growth compared to the previous record from January to August 2023 was 9%.

Shipments this year have already exceeded 90.3 million tons, an increase of 8.3% compared to 2023. Notable is the soybean complex (grains and meal), which totals 34.1 million tons, followed by sugar (17.8 million tons) and corn (5.6 million tons). However, the largest growth during this period was seen in coffee beans, which increased by 53.5% in shipments, reaching almost 1.6 million tons.

In terms of discharges, the increase over the first eight months of the year was 11.2% compared to 2023, surpassing 31.2 million tons. The most discharged cargo was fertilizers, with 4.9 million tons (the 5th most handled at the Port of Santos, surpassed by soybeans, sugar, corn, and cellulose). Another highlight was wheat, which rose by 23.4%, totaling 829,300 tons.

Container movement also reached a record high, with 3.5 million TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units), an increase of 15.1% compared to the same period in 2023.