Itaqui to receive new fertilizer terminal with a R$ 147 million investment
The lease of the IQI16 terminal provides for the redevelopment of an area at the Port of Itaqui and an expansion of fertilizer storage and handling capacity in Maranhão.
The Port of Itaqui, in Maranhão, will have a new facility dedicated to fertilizer handling and storage. The IQI16 terminal lease project provides for investments of R$ 147.01 million and the redevelopment of an approximately 21,800-square-meter port area.
The tender notice was published by the National Waterway Transport Agency (Antaq), and the public session is scheduled for December 9 at 2:00 p.m. The contract will have an initial term of 25 years, with the possibility of an extension. The company that submits the highest grant payment for the right to commercially operate the area will win the bid.
The terminal is expected to have static capacity to store 70,000 tonnes and estimated annual dynamic capacity of 1.008 million tonnes. The facility will be installed in an existing area of the port, which will be adapted to receive the operations.
The expansion meets the infrastructure needs of a Brazilian market dependent on imports. According to the Ministry of Ports and Airports, the country consumes between 40 million and 45 million tonnes of fertilizer per year, and about 80% of this volume is purchased abroad.
Fertilizers are already handled at the Port of Itaqui. The new facility is expected to expand available capacity and offer an additional alternative to companies importing these products through Maranhão, without changing the logistics currently used in the complex.
To preserve competition in the fertilizer market at the Itaqui Port Complex, the tender notice establishes that economic groups with a stake of more than 40% after the lease may win only if there is no other valid proposal. The ministry expects the project to also contribute to higher port revenues, tax collection, and income for the workers involved in the operations.
Source
Ministry of Ports and Airports: https://www.gov.br/portos-e-aeroportos/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/2026/10/leilao-de-terminal-do-porto-do-itaqui-preve-r-147-milhoes-para-ampliar-movimentacao-de-fertilizantes