Chile to decide if Valparaiso or San Antonio will be nation's big portCHILE, which plans to invest US$4.07 billion over the next 15 years in seaports, will chose between two rival ports to determine the location of its big maritime effort, Chilean transport undersecretary Cristian Bowen told a Bogata conference.
Together, the two rival Chilean ports of San Antonio and Valparaiso - 70 kilometres apart - handle 60 per cent of the overall cargo in and our of Chile.
Speaking to the BNamericas 5th South America Infrastructure Summit in Bogata, Mr Bowen said these two ports rival each other to increase the country's container capacity with demand forecast to grow four to five per cent a year.San Antonio has filed a $2.1 billion proposal to increase its capacity by six million TEU a year while Valparaiso plans to raise capacity by three million TEU with an investment of US$1.23 billion.
Both ports currently have a combined handling capacity of 2.3 million TEU a year and with current expansions, this is expected to rise by two million TEU, reports Santiago's Business News Americas, the conference organiser.
"Large-scale ports are essential to meeting a country's demand for goods and increasing trade. It's not a question aboutcompeting with [Peru's] Callao or any other port," said Mr Bowen.
"We need to understand the value of such an endeavour. If we don't build the port, by 2025, San Antonio and Valparaiso will have a large backlog of ships waiting to be unloaded at any given time," he said.
"Next year, we will determine [the port's] location. For now, it's a matter of deciding between San Antonio and Valparaiso. But if demand continues to increase, we may also consider a mixed system," he told delegates.
Together, the two rival Chilean ports of San Antonio and Valparaiso - 70 kilometres apart - handle 60 per cent of the overall cargo in and our of Chile.
Speaking to the BNamericas 5th South America Infrastructure Summit in Bogata, Mr Bowen said these two ports rival each other to increase the country's container capacity with demand forecast to grow four to five per cent a year.San Antonio has filed a $2.1 billion proposal to increase its capacity by six million TEU a year while Valparaiso plans to raise capacity by three million TEU with an investment of US$1.23 billion.
Both ports currently have a combined handling capacity of 2.3 million TEU a year and with current expansions, this is expected to rise by two million TEU, reports Santiago's Business News Americas, the conference organiser.
"Large-scale ports are essential to meeting a country's demand for goods and increasing trade. It's not a question aboutcompeting with [Peru's] Callao or any other port," said Mr Bowen.
"We need to understand the value of such an endeavour. If we don't build the port, by 2025, San Antonio and Valparaiso will have a large backlog of ships waiting to be unloaded at any given time," he said.
"Next year, we will determine [the port's] location. For now, it's a matter of deciding between San Antonio and Valparaiso. But if demand continues to increase, we may also consider a mixed system," he told delegates.