Msc e Maersk potranno partecipare all’asta del nuovo scalo container a condizione di cedere le attività già presenti nel porto
Santos – The Brazilian government has taken a decisive step towards launching the tender for the new mega container terminal at the port of Santos, removing the restrictions that limited the participation of major shipping companies.
With a technical note linked to the Office of the Chief of Staff, the Ministry of Ports has been instructed to modify the concession rules for the future Tecon Santos 10 (STS10) terminal, one of the most important infrastructure projects in Latin American logistics.
The decision officially opens the tender to operators already present in the São Paulo port, such as Mediterranean Shipping Company and A.P. Moller Maersk, provided they divest their current activities in the port if they win the auction.
The Brazilian government has also decided to increase the minimum concession value, which rises from 500 million to over one billion Brazilian reais, while the project foresees total investments exceeding 1.2 billion dollars.
The new terminal is expected to increase the container capacity of the port of Santos by 50%, currently near saturation, strengthening the port’s role as the main maritime hub in Latin America.
The participation of large shipowners had initially been limited following recommendations from the Brazilian Court of Auditors, which had expressed doubts about the competitive effects of the simultaneous presence of shipping companies and terminal operators in the same port.
According to the new technical note, however, the regulatory authority Antaq did not find sufficient reasons to exclude maritime carriers from the procedure, arguing instead that greater openness could favor efficiency and competitiveness.
Among the international groups interested are also Cosco Shipping, China Merchants Ports and International Container Terminal Services, while other entities such as the Brazilian JBS had supported a more restrictive tender model.
The auction, initially scheduled for 2025, has been postponed several times and could now take place in the second half of 2026, although a further delay to 2027 is not ruled out.
The Santos game confirms how control of large container terminals has become central to the global strategies of maritime carriers, increasingly interested in integrating transport and port infrastructure along the world’s main trade routes.
