Tecon Santos 10 may have a new auction model in October

The technical working group (GTT) created in July by the Federal Government to analyze changes to the auction model for the Santos 10 Container Terminal (Tecon Santos 10), at the Saboó quay (STS10) in the Port of Santos, is expected to present its conclusions in October. The forecast was given by National Ports Secretary Alex Sandro de Ávila. According to him, the group’s analysis should be completed later this month.

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After receiving the report, Ávila explained, the National Ports Secretariat will conduct its own assessment and forward the process to the National Waterway Transportation Agency (Antaq), also in October. The secretary, however, did not set a date for the auction of the area, a process that has dragged on for years.

“We do not even need to talk about the importance of Tecon Santos 10. Anyone who follows the sector knows it inside out. The working group has been active for about two months, with four or six meetings held by the teams, in addition to those I hold with my own staff. It is a very widely debated issue,” the secretary told A Tribuna during the 2nd Porto & Mar Meeting, organized by Grupo Tribuna last week at Píer Mauá, in Rio de Janeiro.

The creation of the GTT marked another chapter in the disagreement over which companies will be allowed to compete for the megaterminal. In December 2025, the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) approved a two-stage auction. Under that model, companies that already operate container terminals in Santos, as well as shipping lines, would be barred from taking part in the first stage and could only enter a second round if no valid bid were submitted initially. Before that, Antaq had already reviewed the process and recommended restrictions on companies already operating at the Port.

Even after the decisions by Antaq and the TCU, however, the Federal Government did not finalize the tender notice. The discussion was reopened because of differing positions within the Executive Branch. The Chief of Staff’s Office began supporting an auction open to all interested parties, while the Ministry of Ports and Airports (MPor) had been backing the restricted model. In April, the process was suspended for further debate, and in July the GTT was created.

In addition to the internal disagreement, the Government is facing pressure from major shipping companies from Europe and China that want to participate in the auction but are excluded under the current model.

We have already decided

Antaq director Alber Vasconcelos believes it will be difficult for the agency to change the position it has already adopted on the competitive model for Tecon Santos 10 when the process returns for a new review. According to him, Antaq has already defended a position, and any change in interpretation would also need to take into account the impact on legal certainty in the sector.

“The main point is this: the agency has already ruled on the matter. So, if the agency keeps going back and forth on its decisions, it creates legal uncertainty for the market. We were very firm on the competition issue. We want greater market access, and that was the agency’s proposal,” he said.

Vasconcelos, however, said he would wait to see what is submitted. “The Ministry [of Ports and Airports], of course, will present its information, and we will deliberate. We will wait for the process to arrive,” he explained.

Asked directly whether Antaq could review its position, Vasconcelos acknowledged that decisions can be changed, but showed resistance to a shift unless the circumstances that supported the original position have also changed.

“It is possible to change it, but I think it would be difficult. I am speaking as an agency director. Changing an agency’s decisions weakens the very sector it regulates.” In his view, the factors that led Antaq to its previous conclusion are still in place.

Tecon Santos 10 is planned to occupy 621,900 square meters at the Saboó quay (STS10) and is expected to have capacity to handle 3.25 million TEUs — the standard unit equivalent to a 20-foot container — per year, in addition to general cargo.

Estimated investments exceed R\$ 6 billion. The project is considered essential to expanding container-handling capacity at the Port of Santos.