New Brazilian highways gives relief to southern bulk ports

The new BR-63 highway in Brazil will connect the soya production areas of the state of Mato Grosso with two Northern Brazilian ports, which will help cut the extremely high transport cost for grain and also help relieve heavily congested ports in the South. As a result, in the coming year, a further 3 million tonnes of soya and corn will be dispatched via ports in the North.

These two facilities are currently managed by major players in the industry: Bunge and Cargill, with the latter forecasting that it will quadruple exports in the coming years.

The BR-63, which has been planned for decades, will eventually stretch for 1,385km, although some 400km in the northern state of Pará, are expected to remain unpaved for the foreseeable future.