New port projects in Peru

Peru hopes to award the San Juan de Marcona port project this year, which should also see construction start at the San Nicolás dock project, both in Ica region, while the multipurpose port of Chancay and the expansion of the Callao south dock should be delivered in Lima.

The foreign ministry confirmed that Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the inauguration of the first phase of the Chancay megaproject during his visit to participate in the APEC summit to be held in November in the Peruvian capital.

BNamericas reviews the latest developments from the Peruvian port sector.

NEW PROJECTS

The projects to build the San Juan de Marcona port, the San Nicolás dock, and the Chimbote international port terminal (Ancash region) will advance in 2024.

In the case of the San Juan de Marcona port, the US$405mn project proposed by Chinese company Jinzhao Mining was declared of interest on December 20.

"Representatives of the project have had meetings in the Netherlands, and there will be a virtual meeting with interested parties from Spain. There have also been meetings with Chinese investors – China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)," said ProInversion.

In the event that declarations of interest are submitted, the award via tender will be in 3Q24. In case of a direct award, Jinzhao will take over the project at the end of March. ProInversión said construction would begin in 2026 (see timeline below).

Source: ProInversión Regarding the San Nicolás dock, which will be developed by mining company Shougang Hierro, a subsidiary of Chinese group Shougang, an official communication from port authority APN indicated that the project is cleared to begin construction. Although Shougang Hierro had port authorization to begin works from February 2023, the works were postponed because the company did not decide which company would develop the project.

The updated capex of the project is US$246mn. Construction is expected to start no later than March and last 44 months. BNamericas reached out to supervisors of the San Nicolás project but did not receive a response.

The Chimbote international port terminal is expected to be tendered in 2Q25, while a potential direct award would be in 4Q24. If the latter occurs, the US$172mn project would be carried out by Yilport Holding, a subsidiary of Turkish group Yildirim.

TO BE DELIVERED

The US$3.6bn port of Chancay will deliver its first stage (US$1.3bn) in November. Although the latest official communication indicates that the stage is 60% complete, observers highlight that it could be even further along.

"Progress may even reach 80%. The remaining 20% is to bring in cranes, make the installations and inaugurate on time. In December, it should be receiving its first ship," a port specialist who visited the project site last week told BNamericas on the condition of anonymity.

According to the executive, the port of Chancay will move containers, general cargo, and grains from the agricultural sector but could transport mineral cargo in the future.

On the other hand, the expansion of the south pier of Callao (Bicentenario pier) is a project that accumulated general progress of 80% at the beginning of November 2023 and executed US$24 million in the last two months of that year, according to Ositran. The US$350mn project is expected to wrap up works in April.