Santos Port: Finally, the Tunnel

SÃO PAULO – One of the few public figures in the current government who deserves credibility, the Minister of Infrastructure, Tarcísio de Freitas, guaranteed that the construction of an immersed tunnel is the chosen alternative for the dry connection between Santos and Guarujá, ensuring that the project will be financially viable through the process of privatization of the Port of Santos, which is expected to take place by the end of the year. After nearly a century of futile discussions about the dry connection – bridge or tunnel – it is naturally with some disillusionment that the population receives this information, especially since there are only nine months left in the current presidential term.

As is known, the first time the possibility of building a dry connection between the two municipalities was considered was in 1927, during the time of Governor Júlio Prestes (1882-1946), whose term lasted until 1930. Elected president of the Republic, Prestes was prevented from taking office by the so-called Revolution of 1930, and the project was left in limbo. Since then, four more projects have been developed, but similarly, they never materialized, causing only a waste of public resources. The current project, therefore, is the fifth of its kind.

The last project was presented in 2019 and involved the construction of a bridge with a height of 85 meters and a width of 305 meters between the pillars, with a length of 7.5 kilometers, connecting Via Anchieta at kilometer 64 to the Cônego Domênico Rangoni highway at kilometer 250. It was budgeted at R$2.9 billion and was supposed to be carried out almost exclusively by Ecovias, the concessionaire that manages the Anchieta-Imigrantes System (SAI). Some authorities and experts opposed this project, noting that the simulation of this dry connection did not take into account port expansion.

This time, however, the new project appears to have a better chance of being realized since, according to the plans of the Ministry of Infrastructure, a portion of the concession fees generated by the privatization auction of the port will be allocated to the construction of the tunnel and two additional mobility works in the Baixada Santista. Furthermore, with the port lease agreements scheduled for this year (STS 10, STS 11, and STS 53), there will be estimated investments of R$30 billion.

With a larger infrastructure for cargo reception, Santos will have everything it needs to become not only a major container hub but also host new grain and fertilizer terminals. This is because there will also be investments to expand rail reception and processing capacity. Additionally, with the planned dredging works that could deepen the estuary channel from 15 to 17 meters, it will be possible for mega-ships to dock at the port.

What is hoped for is that this project will be put into practice as soon as possible and that it will continue in 2023, regardless of the government that emerges from the elections in October. And that the Port Authority Council (CAP) regains the decision-making power it had until a few years ago, ceasing to be the merely consultative body it has become.

With CAP composed of four blocks – the public sector (at all three levels of government), port operators, the working class, and service users – with one vote per block, the community itself will determine the direction of the port and promote its development, working together with port management, not only supporting and overseeing management but also demanding solutions. After all, no one knows the port’s problems better than the port community.

Within this scheme, with an extremely democratic composition in CAP, what is expected is that political-party influence in port administration, which has caused so much harm, will finally disappear, leaving the Ministry of Infrastructure free from local issues and focused only on thinking and planning the country’s major logistics axes.

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Liana Lourenço Martinelli, lawyer, postgraduate in Business Management and International Trade, is the Manager of Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) at the Fiorde Group, consisting of Fiorde International Logistics, FTA Transport, Warehouses, and Barter International Trade. Email: lianalourenco@fiorde.com.br. Website: fiorde.com.br.

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