In 2012, APM Terminals signed a 32-year concession for the design, construction and operation of a new deepwater terminal at the port of Lazaro Cardenas. The project will represent an overall investment of $900m, said APMT in a statement.
The first phase of the construction, which has already begun, of Terminal 2 (TEC2) will include 750 metres of quay, five ship-to-shore (STS) cranes, 22 automatic stacking cranes and two railway cranes, and will be able to accommodate very large container vessels.
The first 300 metres of quay are scheduled to be ready in the first quarter of 2015, which will be followed by the installation of the container handling equipment. “The completed terminal, which will add 1.2m teu of annual throughput capacity, is projected to become operational in the first half 2016,” said APM Terminals.
The government of Mexico has announced plans to double port capacity over the next six years to meet anticipated trade growth, particularly on the transpacific trade lane but many port operators wonder if cargo volume will increase accordingly.
Mexico is the second largest economy in Latin America, and third largest container throughput in the region. Mexico president Pena Nieto by passing an energy law opening the sector to foreign investments, expects it will boost construction, shipping and offshore development in the next two years.
Mexican ports dominated by Manzanillo and Lazaro Cardenas on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, totalled 4.87m teu in 2013. Manzanillo, which is Mexico’s largest container port, handled 2.1m teu in 2013, followed by Lazaro Cardenas, located 340 km farther down the coast in the Michoacán State, with 1.05m teu.
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