The Brazilian arm of Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) received final government approval from Brazil’s waterways regulatory body, Antaq last month allowing the company to ship grain through its new terminal outside Belem, in the northern state of Para. This is the first contract approved after the passing of Brazil’s new port law of 2013, which was implemented to attempt to attract more private investment. The terminal will have an initial annual capacity of 1.5 million tons which is expected to increase to 6 million tons by 2016. Eighty percent of the grain shipped through the port will transported to Belem via waterways from Porto Velho, Rondonia in the country’s interior, the remaining 20% will be trucked in until a railway is completed. The new shipping route will ease congestion at Brazil’s southern ports and will cut ADM’s freight costs by 34% compared to shipping out of the southern port of Santos. Both Bunge and Cargill also plan to begin exporting via routes through northern Brazil.
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