Port of Santos may receive R$ 23.4 billion in investments with the concession of the navigation channel

The Port channel receives nearly 6,000 vessels per year, is 25 kilometers long, and passes through three municipalities: Santos, Guarujá, and Cubatão (Alexsander Ferraz/AT)

The concession of the access channel to the Port of Santos may involve up to R\$ 23.453 billion in investments over an initial 25-year contract, with the possibility of deepening the channel to 18 meters. This new project benchmark was detailed by the director of the Agência Nacional de Transportes Aquaviários (Antaq), Flávia Takafashi, in an interview with A Tribuna.

She served as the rapporteur of the process at the agency that approved, this Thursday (5), during a regular board meeting, the opening of a public consultation and public hearing on the concession model for the waterway channel of the Port of Santos.

This deliberation was originally scheduled to take place in December of last year, but Flávia withdrew the project from the agenda to further analyze the documents. Now, the director has decided to allow the advancement of the participatory stages, the dates of which have yet to be defined, enabling public debate of the project and the receipt of contributions.

According to the rapporteur, the contract provides for a broad set of works and services throughout the concession period. “We are talking about deepening dredging to reach 16 meters initially, along with nautical signaling. Then, subsequently, deepening to 17 meters”, the director explains, noting that this first phase involves investments of R\$ 688 million.

In addition to the deepening dredging, the contract provides for the installation of the Vessel Traffic Management and Information System (VTMIS), environmental management services, an operating license, studies for the installation of a training wall to reduce sedimentation on beaches, and surveys to assess the feasibility of deepening the channel to 18 meters.

“We are talking about a total contract value of R\$ 23.453 billion, with an initial term of 25 years, which may be extended to up to 70 years. We are facing a model that, although it still requires some specific adjustments, does indeed have the potential to be attractive enough to achieve the depth that the access channel to the Port of Santos requires.”

For Flávia, this is the moment to refine the model. “Now it is time to move on to the public hearing. Antaq’s technical area conducted a very detailed analysis. Adjustments may be made based on the contributions received. But the document already consolidates the metrics and possibilities to reach 17 meters in depth and to carry out studies to reach 18 meters, which is important at this stage of growth of the Port of Santos.”

Strategic The project for the concession of the access channel to the Port of Santos is considered strategic for national logistics. The studies were submitted to Antaq in August 2025, but underwent reassessments and technical adjustments before returning to the agenda for deliberation.

With the authorization now granted, the regulatory process moves forward again. After the public consultation and hearing, the contributions will support the final adjustments to the project before it is submitted to the Ministério de Portos e Aeroportos (MPor) and the Tribunal de Contas da União (TCU), which are necessary steps for the publication of the tender notice.

Antaq’s decision consolidates, for the first time, the possibility for the access channel to the Port of Santos to reach up to 18 meters in depth — previously, the maximum projection was 17 meters. The planned investments have also increased significantly, as the concession had previously been estimated at R\$ 6 billion.

Part of these changes resulted from requests made by the Autoridade Portuária de Santos (APS). All aspects will be analyzed by MPor during the public debate.

Other locations The proposal differs from the model adopted at the Port of Paranaguá, in the state of Paraná, whose concession was carried out in October of last year and approved in December by MPor, making it the first access channel in the country transferred to private management. In Paranaguá, the channel improvement project totals R\$ 1.22 billion.

Among the planned improvements are widening, rock removal, and deepening until the desired draft is achieved. At the end of the first five years of the concession, the concessionaire must deepen the channel to ensure an operational draft — defined as the distance between the deepest point of the vessel and the water surface — of 15.5 meters.

Currently, the draft is 13.3 meters. Santos is expected to rank third, as the privatization of the channel at the Port of Itajaí (SC) is already under review by the Tribunal de Contas da União (TCU). The tender for Santos is expected to take place by the end of this year.