PARANÁ, BRAZIL — The administration of the Paranaguá and Antonina ports (Appa) announced on Sept. 17 it will invest R$183 million ($47,547,782) in the modernization of berths 201 and 202. This is the first public work of expansion of the pier for berthing at the port of Paranagua in the last 30 years and will be conducted entirely with Appa’s resources.

Governor Beto Richa authorized the opening of the bidding process, competition mode, for the hiring of a construction company to complete the expansion. The notice with invitation to bid will be available on Appa’s website from Sept. 21 to query and the opening of the bidding will be on Oct. 30.

"Food production for the Port of Paranaguá is growing and we need to be prepared to meet this demand that has increased significantly in recent years, especially in the agricultural and industrial exports,"  the governor said.

About 1,800 meters of the pier and expansion of the container terminal have already been completed.

Modernization and the expansion of the pier will triple the operating capacity of the berth. Berth 201 can currently process 2 million tonnes per year, but after the expansion it will be able to process 6 million tonnes per year. Each of the new lines of operation will have the ability to load 2,000 tonnes of grain per hour, with the possibility to receive shipment of new terminals. The current loading lines, with over 10 years of use, carry only 1,000 tonnes per hour.

Secretary of Infrastructure and Logistics José Richa Son said this work at the Port of Paranagua complements the investments made by the government to improve the logistics in Paraná. "We are meeting the needs of the production sector,” he said. “The magnification and the repowering of the western end of the port will allow for the production and strengthening that is essential to our economy.”

Enlargement of berth 201 will allow docking for three ships simultaneously, without restrictions. Since the construction of the berths, there was an increase in the size of ships, without the expansion of the wharf. A large ship currently needs to occupy two docking berths in order to operate from the Port of Paranaguá.
According to the Luiz Henrique Splitting, chief executive officer of Appa, the improvements  will provide greater agility in customer service and a remodel of the entire operational arrangement of the port.

"We will increase the capacity of the berth and efficiency," said Splitting. "In addition, this expansion will provide a new operating arrangement in improving the port operation layout in all other COTS used for importing and exporting."

The berths will also be dredged to accommodate ships with 80,000 tonnes of deadweight (DWT). The modernization of the pier will also enable the installation of equipment for grain loading with operational capacity of 4,000 tonnes per hour.

The project also provides for the extension of 100 meters of berth 201, the construction of a platform for installation of new cargo transfer towers, foundation blocks for the support carriers, installation of two pedestrian walkways, equipment and grain handling facilities in the loading of ships, and a new mechanical system to feed the new ship loaders

The day-to-day operations of imports and exports will not be affected by the construction. The expansion is expected to be completed by the end of 2017.