Chinese company wins Brazilian port dredging contract

China’s Shanghai Dredging Company (SDC) has become the leading shareholder in a consortium that won a US$90.25 million contract to dredge the Port of Santos in Brazil from 13 metres down to 15 metres.

The contract stipulates that some 13.62 million cubic metres of sediment will need to be removed from the Santos channel to get the new depth down to 15 metres, so as to allow next-generation vessels to arrive. When this project is completed, the maximum size of a containership that will be able to berth will be 9,000TEU, against the current 5,000TEU. The Port of Santos said that this would be a tremendous boost to carriers such as NYK, K Line, MOL, and Evergreen, all of which have a strong presence in international trade in Brazil.

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