Port of Chancay, the regional meeting point to reach China

More than 45% of Peru’s exports go to Asia and more than 30% come from there. In the region, the maritime routes today from all the ports in South America go to Mexico or California and only then cross the Pacific. For example, a ship leaving Chile makes its first two stops in Callao and Guayaquil on its way to the east, with a route that, from Peru alone, takes about 35 days.

All of this will be finished in less than nine months. With the direct route from the Chancay Megaport, trade for countries such as Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Colombia, Bolivia and Chile towards China will be reduced by 10 days, because the entire district north of Lima will become a concentrating hub for ships. of more than 18,000 containers, thanks to its draft of 16.5 meters deep.

Peru will not only receive fully loaded ships that previously could not set sail, but will also have a route that represents substantial savings for all regional trade, and whose progress in civil works already exceeds 70%.

Interest in the new trade route has been increasing in recent months, as the equipment phase of the project, scheduled for May and June, approaches. Businessmen and logistics groups from Ecuador, Colombia, Chile, Brazil and even Panama seek to settle in its surroundings, for which Cosco also designs an urban development plan together with the Ministry of Housing, which reaches the towns of Aucallama and Huaral.

This will bring lower transportation costs and make the region’s products more competitive. There are countries in the region that do not have FTA with the Asian giant, so they would be seduced to bring their raw materials to Peru, industrialize it with local labor and be affected by its benefits.

“Peru is once again the leader and center of South America, as it was before the viceroyalty. And it is not pure coincidence, we are geographically blessed,” says Mario de las Casas, public affairs manager at Cosco Shipping, a development company.

The port has a tunnel 1.8 km long, 14 m wide and 8 m high, three dynamic lanes (round trip direction) and a fourth for the conveyor belt. In the operational area alone, it has 80 hectares and 4 terminals: two bulk terminals for Roll On-Roll Off projects (with a giant maneuvering yard) and two large state-of-the-art container docks, 100% remote-controlled, as occurs in the most ports. important companies from the US and China, with automatic cranes and unmanned trucks.

From giant to giant

However, the installation of bulk terminals and warehouses, on a private capital port (it is not a concession), does not respond to a mere bet by Cosco. China targets Brazil, the largest grain producer in the region.

“The Chinese think 50 years from now before investing, they think about what they have to leave for future generations,” says Casas.

Brazil, whose shipments exceeded US$105.75 billion with China in 2023, only has three ways to reach Asia: through Cape Horn, the Mediterranean or the Panama Canal. That takes up to 50 days, depending on its origin.

The states of Acre and Rondonia, adjacent to Peru, are its large reserves of grains and soybeans, but it has to make an internal freight of almost 3,000 kilometers to reach the Atlantic. If you leave via the Pacific, it could take three times less time.

The route is already a reality, but it is not capitalized through the IRSSA Sur because, once it arrives in Arequipa, the cargo still has to make stops to Mexico. Cosco, being an integrated port and shipping operator, begins the project with that established route, and plans to use a ship from its fleet to make the Matarani-Chancay connection.

Cabotage is not the only option. There is also an understanding for the Bioceanic Train, which will connect the Atlantic and the Pacific through Pucallpa. China is also interested in the project.

Other countries have also launched their offers to accompany the project. This week, a delegation of 15 businessmen from Ecuador’s logistics sector arrived in Chancay to see the possibilities. And, in February, Ecuador became the fourth Latin American country to have a trade agreement with the Asian giant after Chile, Peru and Costa Rica.

Christian Chávez, president of the Association of International Road Transporters (Andinatic), expresses the northern country’s interest in sending bananas, shrimp, broccoli and asparagus, among others, from Chancay. In logistics issues, they see the possibility of making investments in large vehicle warehouses that boost the region’s economy.

“But we must wait for a territorial development project for Chancay and a Special Economic Zone (ZEE) that will give us more certainty for investment. We do international transportation to Peru with an Ecuadorian fleet, but depending on how trade grows we could also invest in local fleets,” highlights Chávez.

And, according to official figures, the joint exports of Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Ecuador to China exceeded US$150,000 million in 2023. The race to capture this cargo could be frustrated by the lack of complementary works and industrial promotion zones, responsibility , of course, from the Government.

APEC 2024 and a door that opens with the Megaport

The inauguration of the first stage of Chancay, with an investment of US$1.3 billion, will take place in November, with the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping for the APEC 2024 summit.

Rafael Zacnich, manager of Economic Studies at ComexPerú, warns that, despite the progress of works by Cosco Shipping, the Government is very late with the delivery of complementary road works, the approval of the cabotage law, and the late announcement of an SEZ in the area, which was to be launched in the first quarter.

The Chancay megaport would contribute around 0.2 points to the annual growth of Peru’s GDP, according to the Moody’s group.

Parks and routes from Chancay

Approach. Jesús Salazar, president of the SIN

The Chancay megaport is more than a logistical issue, everyone talks about its size, but beyond that it will be the hub of the region, it will generate an entire industrial and technological development, thanks to a corridor between Chancay and Callao.

It is an opportunity to receive 1 million containers a year, which will arrive from Asia leaving products, and hopefully we will be in a position to fill them back with national products.

870 hectares are planned for an industrial park, where about 500 are usable. We have spoken with Volcan, who are in charge of that sector, and we have made a first contact to do it in coordination.

If we add to this the Ancón Industrial Park, launched by Proinversión and with some 715 usable hectares, it gives us more than 1,200 hectares in parks just between Chancay and Ancón.

There is a range of possibilities facing the continent, since Chancay will be a window. What industries could we generate to supply them? Asia consumes a lot of soy, palm oil, chemicals, closed wood, coffee, cocoa, etc. Products that could be easily provided by Peru.

However, the megaport will be inaugurated at the end of the year and we are just talking about complementary works. If we carry those million containers per day, it gives us a transit of 3,000 per day. Are we prepared to have internal cabotage? And if it is by land, will the Panamericana Norte support it? The answer, obviously, is no. And that is why we must accelerate the works.