The chaos in the rainfall regime caused the transport of grains to plummet on two of the largest waterways in the country. From January to June, the movement of soybeans through the river corridors fell by 38%, while corn loads had a reduction of 18%. The losses in the sector are against the background of seemingly contradictory problems: the severe drought in the Southeast region, which makes the use of the Tietê-Paraná waterway unfeasible, and the historic flood in the Madeira River at the beginning of this year. With vessels unable to navigate, at least 20 additional tandem trucks were needed to transport agricultural production, increasing logistical costs and jeopardizing the already weakened efficiency on the way to the ports.
The difficulties experienced in waterway transport have been evident for several months, but figures recently compiled by the National Waterway Transport Agency (Antaq) accurately scale the size of the crisis. The scenario that worries the most is Tietê-Paraná. “We are not optimistic about the possibility of having the waterway until the return of the rainy season”, said Antaq's inland navigation development and regulation manager, José Renato Fialho. To preserve more water in the reservoirs, the flow was reduced in federal rivers, reducing the draft. “The electricity sector does not give up generation. We have been talking to the ANA [National Water Agency], but still without success.”
In the São Simão-Pederneiras and São Simão-Anhembi sections, both in the State of São Paulo, not a single grain of corn was transported by the Tietê river this year. When the harvest arrived, the river corridor was practically paralyzed. In the case of soy, there was a reduction of more than 50%, depending on the stretch. “Since the beginning of the year, vessels have had restrictions. From April to May, they completely stopped traffic.”
In the case of the Madeira River, the operation of the Cargill terminal in Porto Velho was interrupted for two months, due to the flooding of its facilities. The force of the water caused the flow of cargo to be impaired for almost three months. In the first semester, the transport of soybeans from Porto Velho had a reduction of 47% to Itacoatiara and 44% to Santarém.
In the estimates of Adalberto Tokarski, director of Antaq, it was necessary to resort to at least 20 bit-train trucks (with two semi-trailers in the same composition) to handle the cargo that could not be transported by rivers. In total, the drop in soybean and corn movement reached around 1,4 million tons between the first six months of 2013 and 2014.
For Tokarski, the concern does not end there: companies lose confidence in the waterway modal and railroad operators, without competition from vessels, can charge more for freight.
When not only grains are taken into account, but all types of cargo, the decline was much lighter: just 1% in the first half. But this number is influenced by the increase in iron ore transported by Vale on the Paraguay River waterway, from Corumbá (MS), towards Argentina – there was a 30% increase in the movement of the product.
Source: Valor Econômico
By: Daniel Rittner | From Brasilia
