Showcasing new developments in Brazil's maritime industries

Marcelo Veloso, commercial diretor of Prumo Logística, gave a talk on the latest developments at the Port of Açu, located in the north of the State of Rio.

The port complex started operations as recently as 2014 and has been attracting important partners at its three main terminals. Oil majors BP, Chevron and Petrobras have significant operations there, as have some of the main oil and gas service providers, and leading OSV operator Edison Chouest.

Açu Port has also recently inked a partnership agreement with the Port of Antwerp, expanding its international reach.

Other key speakers were Luiz Marcelo Martins Almeida – Manager of the Oil and Gas Department of BNDES (National Development Bank) on long-term financing instruments for investments in the maritime and innovation sectors.

Fernando Faria - partner, head of infrastructure, deal advisory at KPMG, spoke on the major dedicated ship repair yard to be built in the northeast state of Paraíba, in a partnership between McQuilling Services from the United States and Brazilian company Promon Engineering. The yard hopes to attract all sizes of ships from Europe and Asia for mid-voyage repairs, as it is adjacent to major South Atlantic shipping routes.

ABENAV also promoted a workshop on the importance of innovation for the increase in competitiveness and the Innovation Space at the expo drew a good audience all day long. While RINA held a training session on Introduction to Classification and Certification, which was standing room only.

The fact that both longstanding and new exhibitors, along with industry executives have acknowledged the importance of Marintec SA as a key meeting place for the Maritime industry, is a testament of the success of this year’s event and it long history in Brazil.

Keeping in mind that the Brazilian Maritime & Offshore markets have been in a financial crisis for the last three years, it was noteworthy to see the positive outlook demonstrated by exhibitors and visitors alike.

Rockfibras’ commercial director Marco Navarro, who attends Marintec every year, was surprised by the business potential of the 2017 edition. "I've been coming to Marintec for a decade because this is the event where I meet potential customers for our services. This is the most relevant fair to evaluate the thermometer of the maritime industry, " he said.

Managing partner of Paranaguá Port, a provider of solutions to the port segment, Eduardo Leite said that, in addition to finding possible trade partners at the fair, he was able to take advantage of an environment conducive to generating business to expand his portfolio.

"This was my first time at Marintec, with the objective of getting to know what’s new in the market and prospecting. I like what I see and I am confident that we will even expand our client portfolio from the contacts started at the event. We intend to return in the coming years.”