Santos Brasil reaps the results of investments made years ago

At a seaport, readying to person incoming cargo is portion of the routine, but Santos Brasil took that thought further. The company, which operates the instrumentality terminal (Tecon) and different conveyance terminal astatine the Port of Santos, Brazil’s largest, drew up a ten-year program successful the past decennary to hole for the beforehand of Brazilian exports.

Since 2019, an concern rhythm of 2.6 cardinal reais (US$475.7 million) has been underway to rise the port’s operational capableness to 3 cardinal containers. That capableness volition beryllium reached successful 2026, 5 years up of the archetypal forecast. “We did not chopped backmost connected investments during Covid-19. As a result, we kept gaining marketplace stock erstwhile request surged,” says Antônio Sepúlveda, CEO of Santos Brasil. In summation to Santos, the institution operates six different terminals astir the country.

The institution stands retired for maintaining precocious concern levels implicit extended periods successful a capital-intensive sector. In 2024, the institution posted revenue of 2.9 cardinal reais (US$530.6 million), up 36% from the erstwhile year, with profit of 741.9 cardinal reais (US$135.7 million). Container throughput astatine the 3 ports wherever Santos Brasil operates—Santos (SP), Imbituba (SC), and Vila bash Conde (PA)—was 1.4 million, 22% much than successful 2023. Last year, successful summation to beardown growth, the institution was acquired by the CMA CGM group, a French shipping multinational contiguous successful 160 countries that serves 600 ports and operates much than 60 terminals, opening up adjacent much concern possibilities.

In 2025, the numbers proceed to rise. In the archetypal half, instrumentality measurement grew 9% compared with the aforesaid play successful 2024. Sepúlveda notes that the institution has debased indebtedness, with a leverage of 1.33. The daze to exports to the United States, deed by Donald Trump’s tariffs, had small impact, since shipments are progressively headed to Asia. At the aforesaid time, the hunt for caller concessions continues. “You person to prehend the moment, due to the fact that opportunities tin instrumentality 70 years to travel astir again. That’s the word of larboard contracts,” the CEO says.

Dollar conversions usage 1 USD = 5.4659 BRL (Oct. 13, 2025).