WASHINGTON: In 2016, port traffic in Uruguay varied considerably between ports and commodities. Container traffic at Montevideo over the first 11 months showed 8% growth, reaching 810,000 teu. Transhipment container traffic rose 31% following the lifting of the ban on handling Argentinean boxes.
In the same period, general cargo at the port rose 3% to more than 10m tonnes and dry bulk grew by 8%. At Nueva Palmira, traffic was down 12%, with throughput amounting to 6.92m tonnes for the first 11 months. Fray Bentos reported a 4% increase of 2m tonnes, while Paysandú was down 16%, as sugar and barley imports fell.
Separately, the National Ports Authority (ANP) is working on a countrywide port development plan with Spain’s Valenciaport Foundation. The plan is backed by the Latin American Development Bank. “The idea of the plan is to use it as a guide for action, and as a means of determining which direction to go in,” said ANP president Alberto Díaz. Areas being looked at include dry bulk, containers, cruise and fishing. “All of them have different requirements and sometimes they compete for the same space, for which reasons we have go to solve these internal conflicts,” said Mr Díaz.
