Coastal shipping is advancing in Brazil, but still faces barriers to achieving scale.

"Coastal shipping performs better for large volumes and long distances, where the economies of scale of the ship significantly dilute the cost per ton. Road transport, on the other hand, wins in terms of flexibility and reach," says Maria Fernanda Hijjar, managing partner of the Institute of Logistics and Supply Chain (Ilos).

In 2025, also considering bulk cargo and other types of cargo, the mode transported 223 million tons, a 4,33% increase in one year, according to data from Antaq compiled by the Ministry of Ports and Airports. Of this total, 170,7 million tons were liquid and gaseous bulk cargo and 24 million were containers.