Brazil’s planned Tecon Santos 10 container terminal, expected to expand the Port of Santos by about 50%, is unlikely to be auctioned before 2027 after a prolonged dispute over who should be allowed to bid.
The auction was initially scheduled for 2022 and has now been postponed nine times, according to CNN Brasil. Brazil’s Ministry of Ports and Airports expects the bidding process to take place next year.
The project is considered the country’s most important port expansion currently being developed. Santos, in São Paulo state, is Brazil’s largest port and is operating close to its container-handling limit. The shortage of available space has contributed to a sharp increase in logistics costs, while operators and exporters have warned that delays to new investment could weaken Brazil’s competitiveness.
The central disagreement concerns market concentration. One proposal, developed by Antaq, Brazil’s National Waterway Transport Agency, would restrict companies that already operate container terminals at Santos from participating in the first phase of the auction. They could compete only if the initial round received no bids, and any victory would require the sale of existing assets to prevent excessive concentration.
The restriction would affect the operators of Santos’s three existing container terminals — BTP, Santos Brasil and DP World — as well as shipping companies that hold stakes in those facilities.
When the project was reviewed by the Federal Court of Accounts, known as the TCU, its ministers recommended that all shipping lines also be limited to the second phase of the auction. That recommendation would further narrow the field of potential bidders.
Supporters of the restrictions argue that allowing incumbent operators unrestricted access could concentrate control of container handling at Brazil’s largest port. Gesner Oliveira, a professor at Fundação Getulio Vargas and a partner at GO Associados, defended Antaq’s two-stage model, saying that essential infrastructure requires competition and should not be dominated by a small number of companies.
Opponents favor a broader auction open to all qualified bidders, combined with safeguards such as mandatory divestment after a successful bid. They argue that allowing more companies to compete could increase the number of offers, reduce concentration risks and produce greater efficiency and lower costs for port users.
Jurist José Cardozo told CNN Brasil that the auction must balance maximum competition with legal qualification requirements and the public interest. The goal, he said, is to address the bottleneck without allowing bidders that cannot meet the necessary conditions.
Brazil’s Civil Affairs Office later backed an open auction, including participation by existing Santos operators, provided that winners sell assets if necessary. Antaq requested clearer guidance before adapting the project’s design to the new policy.
The government subsequently created a working group to translate the Civil Affairs Office’s position into formal guidelines. The group remains active, but no final decision has been announced.
This is single-source reporting based on CNN Brasil’s account.