By Redação PortalPortuario
The president of the Santos Port Authority (APS), Anderson Pomini, the Minister of Ports and Airports, Silvio Costa Filho, and the director-general of the Federal Police, Andrei Rodrigues, signed a memorandum of understanding in Brasília for the construction of the new Federal Police station headquarters in the Port of Santos.
The project, a 10-story building, will receive investments of R$ 58 million from APS, with participation from the Internal Railroad of the Port of Santos (FIPS), and will integrate the judicial police, administrative units, and the Special Maritime Police Unit (Nepom). Located at the entrance of the channel and within the boundary of the Port of Santos, the building will reinforce the operational capacity of the Federal Police throughout the Baixada Santista region.
The president of APS highlighted the cycle of major investments in the Port of Santos. “We are going through a historic moment, unlocking century-old projects, such as the Santos-Guarujá tunnel, the deepening of the access channel, a historic expansion of the Port – which currently has 7.2 million – to 20 million square meters. This increases the responsibility of all institutions, especially those responsible for the constitutional competence to take care of security,” stated Pomini.
For Minister Silvio Costa Filho, the signing of the memorandum between the agencies is a milestone for the security and efficiency of port operations, as the partnership reinforces the strategic importance of Santos for Brazil’s development: “The Federal Police will strengthen the protection of this asset of Brazil. And as the Port grows, in terms of cargo volume, we will automatically need the Federal Police to be more present,” he said.
Director-General Andrei Rodrigues emphasized the importance of the project for the country and for the Federal Police. “This is the main Brazilian port, and placing a robust Federal Police unit there brings a sense of security to the operator, to the guard, to those who use the service, who do business at the Port, in addition to lowering costs and improving the business environment.”
The complex is to be installed in the property that previously served the Ministry of Fisheries, opposite the Convention Center. Besides its strategic position at the channel entrance, the Federal Police highlighted the improvement of security conditions to combat international drug trafficking and to provide faster responses to incidents and operations at sea, such as smuggling and other transnational crimes.
