Paralyzed since the end of May, by decision of the ONS (National Electric System Operator), the Tietê-Paraná waterway should only return to regular operation in the first half of 2015. Since its interdiction, due to the drought in the State of São Paulo, More than 6 million tons of products were no longer transported, with special emphasis on the harvest of grains and bran from Mato Grosso and Goiás. In 2014, only 500 tons of soybeans and corn passed through Tietê-Paraná, frustrating the expectations of producers who expected to dispose of 2,5 million tons through the most important waterway corridor in the country. In 2013, 6,2 million tons of cargo such as corn, soy, oil, wood, coal, fertilizer and sand were transported.
The reason for the ban came from a decision by the ONS to favor hydroelectric power generation at the Ilha Solteira power plants, on the Paraná river, and Três Irmãos, on the Tietê river. Due to flow containment, with the aim of keeping the reservoirs high, the draft of the Tietê River was reduced to levels below that allowed for convoy navigation. Navigation regulations require a minimum draft of 2,20 meters for navigation.
The critical point is in a 10 km stretch between the Três Irmãos plant and the Nova Avanhandava plant, in the municipalities of Andradina and Buritama, where the draft is 1 meter. As a result, the fleet of 21 convoys that used to operate on the waterway is stopped, which caused around 1.000 layoffs between direct and indirect jobs and an estimated loss of R$ 700 million among shipowners, according to Sindasp (Sindicato dos Armadores de Navegação State of São Paulo).
"The decision to preserve the reservoirs of the plants was wrong and caused a crisis not only among shipowners, but also in the agribusiness sector, which was forced to resort to road freight, which is 30% more expensive than water transport", says Luiz Fernando Horta de Siqueira, president of Sindasp. For him, shipowners are able to return to activities as long as there is a minimum period of three months for rehiring the dismissed workforce. “But the biggest damage was the loss of credibility of the modal. 20 years of work was thrown away, ”he laments.
With a length of 2.400 km, the most relevant stretch of the Tietê-Paraná waterway is the route between São Simão (GO) and Pederneiras (SP), responsible for transporting 2,5 million tons of grains and bran from the Midwest. In Pederneiras, the products travel by rail to the port of Santos. But, with the stoppage, around 2 million tons were transported by trucks, in an average distance of 2.250 km. According to Edeon Vaz Ferreira, executive director of Movimento Pro Logística, the prospect of soybean harvest in Mato Grosso is scheduled for mid-January due to the delay in the rains. “If the waterway is not reopened by February, trucks will be bogged down on the highways,” he says.
According to Renato Pavan, president of the infrastructure and competitiveness committee at Abag (Brazilian Agribusiness Association), the estimated loss for the sector is R$ 30 million. For the next year, the perspective is that the production of soy and corn in the Midwest will progressively migrate from the waterway modal to the railroad, since there is a forecast for the arrival of the Norte-Sul in São Simão and its interconnection with the port of Santos .
The Waterway Department of the State of São Paulo, responsible for the 800 km of the São Paulo stretch, is working with two scenarios for the opening. The most optimistic predicts the return for the 15th of January, but the decision needs to be approved by the ONS, the ANA (National Water Agency) and Ibama.
Source: Valor Econômico
By Guilherme Meirelles | For Valor, from São Paulo
