The International Container Terminal Services Inc.’s (ICTSI) terminal in Argentina’s capital city Buenos Aires, TecPlata, has launched a new regular service connecting the Port of La Plata to the Port of Montevideo in Uruguay.

The service is operated by the ro-ro cargo vessel iNTREPiDO, which loads export cargo from TecPlata for transshipment in Uruguay.

“We are increasing connectivity to offer the market new options in response to the growing volume driven by Argentina’s foreign trade needs,” said Juan Pablo Trujillo, TecPlata’s chief executive officer. “We aim to provide more competitive alternatives to meet the challenges ahead.”

He added, “We constantly listen to the market and provide customer-tailored solutions, including this partnership with ISL. We trust that it will be successful in the context of volume growth.”

Challenges

For its part, ISL said it is aware of the challenges in Río de la Plata — many of which do not even originate in the region.

Ocean-bound vessels skip some ports, usually Buenos Aires, due to draft restrictions, resulting in a significant number of containers in Montevideo that need to be transshipped.

“Together with TecPlata, we developed a service between Montevideo and TecPlata to address this issue more efficiently and establish long-term relationships with various shipping lines,” explained ISL.

With this latest offering, TecPlata reaffirms its support for Argentina’s foreign trade by enhancing access to international markets and strengthening the country’s global connectivity.

TecPlata S.A., in October 2008, was granted a 30-year concession to build and operate an all-purpose port terminal in the greater Buenos Aires area in Argentina by the Consorcio de Gestion del Puerto La Plata.

Built with an investment of US$450 million, TecPlata is Argentina’s most modern container terminal with an initial capacity of 450,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) capacity, and capable of being extended of up to 1 million TEUs in the second phase.

Portfolio of terminals

For its part, the International Container Terminal Services Inc. which was established in 1988 in Manila, Philippines, is in the business of port development, management and operations.

ICTSI’s portfolio of terminals and projects are located in developed and emerging market economies in the Asia Pacific, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Independent with no shipping or consignee-related interests, ICTSI works and transacts transparently with all stakeholders of the supply chain.

The company continues to receive global acclaim for its public-private partnerships, which are focused on sustainable development, and supported by corporate social responsibility initiatives.