Spotlight: The Mexican ports set to receive the biggest public investment next year

Three Mexican ports will receive more than 80% of the planned investments in the 2023 budget proposal that was recently submitted by the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. 

These are the Veracruz port in the namesake state, the Lázaro Cárdenas port in Michoacán, and the Altamira port in Tamaulipas, according to a report published Thursday by local business publication Expansión, based on the proposal that the finance ministry sent to the lower house at the beginning of this month.

The combined investments for the ports total 2.4bn pesos (US$114mn) for next year, up 1.8% from the 2022 budget. 

The proposal also includes investments for another eight ports but none of these were assigned funding above 400mn pesos. 

All the planned investments for 2023 will be coordinated by the navy ministry (Semar), which last year became the country's main port authority as part of a reform. 

Veracruz

Under the proposed budget, the port will receive 1.1bn pesos for the construction a water breaker, dredging works in the navigation areas and new docks. 

In June, BNamericas reported that the Veracruz port authority (Asipona) launched two tenders for works in the northern bay area. One involved works to complete a dock that will be part of an existing terminal for mineral bulk, and the other involved an executive project for the construction of another access to the area.

The main cargo handled by the port is non-agricultural bulk. 

Altamira

This port will receive 473mn pesos, almost 40% more than what was approved for this year. The funds will be used for protection works, including 13, 200m breakwaters, and dredging works for New Panamax ships.

In July, BNamericas reported that the Altamira port authority rolled out a plan to expand the northern access canal, for which the federal government will provide 846mn pesos this year and next.  

The authority said on Wednesday that it signed a new contract with Mexican port terminal operator Mexplus Puertos so that one of its two terminals, Operadora de Terminales Marítimas (OTM), can be expanded to boost handling of agriculture bulk cargo. 

The port mainly serves the petrochemical industry.

Lázaro Cárdenas

The port will receive 373mn pesos for projects related to expanding its capacity to serve the automobile industry. 

A foreign trade expert told BNamericas last month that the port is oversaturated and needs urgent expansion works or another terminal.