The ports of Paranaguá and Antonina set a new record for cargo handling in a single month: 6,081,904 tons transported in May. The volume is historic and, for the first time, Paraná terminals surpass the level of six million tons handled in this period. The mark is 5% higher than the previous monthly record, from May 2020, when there were just over 5.7 million tons.
In the first five months of this year, the ports of Paraná accumulated 24,343,390 tons handled: an increase of 2% compared to the same period of the previous year. In 2021, exports totaled 14,752,349 tons and imports, 9,591,041 tons.
In these five months, the highlight was in the General Cargo segment, which includes products that arrive or leave accommodated in containers; those shipped as Break Bulk, in which large quantities of cargo are accommodated directly in the holds of ships, such as cellulose and sugar in bags, for example; and the “Roll-On/Roll-Off”, which enter ships on wheels, such as cars, buses and machinery.
Almost 20% of all cargo handled in the month was characterized as General: 1,203,598 tonnes in this segment. Thus, between January and May 2021, the ports of Paraná totaled 5,498,338 tons of these products, an increase of 14% compared to the same period in 2020 (4,825,494).
For the CEO of Portos do Paraná, Luiz Fernando Garcia, the global economic moment and the coronavirus pandemic influenced growth. “Cellulose was one of the products that became essential, as it is used in hygiene products, cleaning and personal protection equipment, such as masks and disposable aprons”, he said.
In May, 44,800 tonnes were exported via Paranaguá. This year there are already 278,216 tons. In addition to leaving Brazil in the Break Bulk format, the product was also exported in containers. There were 136,578 tons of pulp shipped in this way since January.
CONTAINER – In all, cargo handled in containers, in the last month of May, totaled 1,056,047 tons: 550,180 for exports and 505,867 for imports. In the year, there are 4,736,686 tons of containerized cargo.
In exports, the product exported in greater volume was frozen chicken: 776,789 tons in the first five months of 2021, equivalent to 37% of exports in the segment.
“The Container Terminal in Paranaguá currently has the largest structure for containers in Latin America, with a capacity of 2.5 million units, in addition to the largest structure for refrigerated cargo in Brazil”, highlighted Garcia.
Another highlight in this type of shipment was the export of wood (389,505 tons); import of fertilizers (175,646 tons); plastics (161,841); and organic chemicals (95,130).
OTHER PRODUCTS – Still as General Cargo, the highlight goes to exported sack sugar (342,242 tons) and imported train tracks, which reached 5,175 tons in the year.
Vehicles are also in the segment. In May, 6,994 units were exported and 2,177 imported. The movement, which includes cars, agricultural machinery and buses, rose again in 2021. In comparison with the first five months of the previous year, the increase has already reached 39%. There were 26,438 units handled in 2020 and 36,675 this year.
LIQUID BULK – The export of vegetable oils grew 17% between January and May. There were 157,050 tons in the last month alone, almost 40% of the total accumulated in the year (508,087 tons).
The import, without registration in May 2020, took place in 2021: 19,515 tons. The products, which were scarce on the domestic market, had to be purchased abroad. In the first five months of the year, 136,454 tonnes were imported, compared to 23,250 in the same period in 2020, an increase of 487%.
SOLID BULK – The movement of soy, bran, corn, wheat and sugar in grains had a slight decrease in the comparison between the five months of 2021 and 2020, with a decrease of 3%. The rainy weather and the delay in the field hampered shipments in the first months of the year, but the segment continues to be responsible for more than 63% of movements in the ports of Paraná.
Between January and May 2021, 15,432,234 tons of solid bulk were handled. In the same months last year, there were 15,879,220 tonnes.
In May this year, bulk exports totaled 3,053,911 tons, equivalent to more than 77% of all exports from the Ports of Paranaguá and Antonina. In the month, the highlights were the export of soy (1,983,809 tons), bran (563,769) and sugar (551,313).
FERTILIZER – In imports, fertilizers represented almost 44% of everything that arrived in the year. There were 4,193,214 tons of products in the period, with 927,616 being handled in May alone.
ANTONINA – The Port of Antonina registered a 30% increase in movement. There were 265,749 tonnes between January and May 2021, compared to 120,852 in the same period in 2020. Sugar, which was not handled in the first five months of last year, was exported in 2021: 89,206 tonnes. Fertilizers had an increase of 46% in the period, totaling 176,546 tons.
MODAIS – The ports of Paranaguá and Antonina registered 1,012 ship berthings, an increase of 4% compared to the first five months of 2020, with 970 maneuvers.
More than 77% of the total cargo arrived or left via the highway. In May alone, 4,698,159 tons were transported by truck. The modal, however, had a 3% drop in participation, compared to the same month in 2020, when it accounted for about 81% of the total.
The percentage was absorbed by the railway modal, which grew in this exact proportion, going from 17.80% (1,017,637 tons) in May last year to 20.77% (1,262,209 tons) last month.
Source: Portos do Paraná
