Construction of the Chancay seaport is 18.89% complete overall, according to the government of Peru.

Work on the Chancay port terminal has reached 18.89% overall progress, according to Peru’s Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC).

• Its construction, according to that Peruvian ministry, is key for international trade, as the new facility is intended to become a hub that redistributes cargo from Chile, Ecuador and Colombia.

Not long ago, Chancay was a quiet fishing and farming enclave on Peru’s central coast frequented by tourists, according to a BBC report.

But the lives of its 63,400 inhabitants are about to change with the creation of this megaport, which will turn the town into a key link in trade between Latin America and China.

Who is building the new seaport?

• Cosco Shipping Ports is the Chinese state-owned company building the Chancay Multipurpose Port Terminal 80 kilometers north of Lima.

The megaport aims to become one of the preferred departure points for the raw materials the region exports to China, such as copper and other minerals that Peru produces in abundance.

Its builders intend that, given its size and volume of operations, it will become a nerve center of international trade.

The investment in its construction is considerable: 3.6 billion dollars according to official projections.

The complex engineering work already under way could attract 50% of the roughly 580 billion dollars in trade that moves between China and South America each year, according to Peruvian government estimates.

What Peru’s new seaport will look like

The project envisions the use of up to 15 berths, which would make it the largest in Latin America and the Pacific. Its first stage contemplates the operation of up to four loading and unloading points.

The head of the MTC, Geiner Alvarado, said in an interview with local outlet Perú 21 that the megaport will decongest the access routes to the port of Callao.

That will generate opportunities for cargo coming from the east and the central highlands; it will also raise its competitiveness against other markets. This will make it possible to meet growing port demand and reduce costs and cost overruns in the domestic and international market,” he said.

Given the scale of the project, it will receive vessels of up to 18,000 TEU capacity, considered the largest ships in the world.

The idea of building a complementary port to relieve congestion at El Callao, the main point of arrival for goods entering Peru, had been on the table for some time, according to the BBC report.

A controversial construction

With the arrival of investment from Cosco Shipping, the project took shape and its controversial construction began, as environmental groups have raised doubts about the well-being of the area.

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To build the port, one of the hills that formed part of the cliffs typical of that area of Peru was demolished, and to connect it with the Pan-American Highway a 1.8-kilometer tunnel is being excavated beneath the town center of Chancay that will have three lanes for vehicle traffic.

The link will also have two lanes for the transport of solid bulk cargo and pipelines for liquids.

There will also be large container storage areas, parking for heavy vehicles, offices and customs facilities.

The mega project also aims to boost the so-called New Silk Road.

In addition, its construction is part of the Chinese government’s massive investment plan to build large infrastructure projects around the world.

Source: The Logistic World