Logistics to ship the production from Klabin’s Puma II Project was optimized using Brado’s new multimodal operation and South America’s largest container terminal

Paraná, November 7, 2022 – Paraná exported over 1 million tons of pulp and paper between January and July 2022, an increase of 21% from the same period in 2021. According to the Special Secretary of Foreign Trade and International Affairs (SECEX), the consolidated number of 1,091,752 tons is largely driven by Klabin, which, a year ago, launched its mega operation to ship the production from its Puma II Project for export through the Port of Paranaguá at an investment of over R$300 million on the Ortigueira Railroad terminal in partnership with Brado and TCP, with the capacity to transport 125,000 tons of containerized pulp and paper per month, connecting the Puma Unit to the port.

Paraná is currently Brazil’s 5th largest pulp and paper exporter and Klabin is the main company in the state operating in this segment. The recent expansion of Puma II at an investment of R$12.9 billion -  the biggest private investment ever made in Paraná – which started production and exports in 2021 and already accounts for 6% of the total pulp and paper cargo shipped by the region in 2022.

The huge production volume requires robust logistics to sustain exports. Considered the world’s largest intermodal logistics project in terms of transportation capacity to a client, i.e., using various means of transport to export a product to its destination, the “KBT Project” connects Puma II to the Port of Paranaguá using customized infrastructure. A container yard adjacent to the mill in Ortigueira is operated by the Paranaguá Container Terminal (TCP) and is directly connected to the railroad, where Brado Logística transports the cargo to the Port of Paranaguá, where TCP once again handles the containers until these are loaded on to ships.

Results of multimodal operation

In its first year of operation, the KBT project handled 16,237 export containers. During the period, railroad cargo transportation in Paraná increased 40%. According to Roberto Bisogni, director of Operational Planning and Logistics at Klabin, “the Puma II Project is still in the production ramp-up stage and should cross the mark of 375,000 tons of kraftliner paper produced in 2022, which means around 20,000 containers exported by the year-end.” 

On average, 17 train trips are made a month to serve the Monte Alegre and Puma units, with Brado transporting over 346,000 tons during the first year of the project. According to Andrea Ramos, commercial director of Brado, the numbers demonstrate the potential and efficiency of the multimodal solution. “It is a robust, efficient and safe operation. The terminal’s infrastructure, directly integrated with the railroad, enabled more sustainable logistics in terms of transportation capacity as well as a reduction in fuel consumption and, consequently, pollutants,” she added.

Through Greenlog, a tool developed by the company that calculates monthly and total CO2 emissions avoided by using multimodal transport considering the volume of cargo and distance covered, the KBT project reduced CO2 emissions by 14,491 tons. According to data from the platform, to absorb the entire volume of CO2 emissions avoided, 103,464 thousand trees would have to be planted. Also, the emission volume avoided corresponds to the annual emission of more than 3,130 cars.

Logistics of the terminals

The KBT project has static capacity for 2,500 containers and has handled 16,237 containers since its launch.  In 2022, 89% of the project volume was transported via railroad.
 

Heavy investments are also made in the port to keep the operation running. “Besides using our expertise and operational labor in the Ortigueira yard, we do all the storage and handling of containers at the Port of Paranaguá – right from unloading from trains to loading on to ships,” said Mateus Campagnaro, Marketing and Logistics manager at TCP. “The increase in pulp and paper volume demands cutting-edge infrastructure and TCP is prepared to meet the demand,” he added.

Providing the highest number of maritime services among the Brazilian container terminals, TCP offers safe shipping of Klabin’s cargo and expertise in handling it in Ortigueira and Paranaguá. “The logistics involved in foreign trade has imposed major challenges on exporters, and being able to count on the expertise and reliability of Brado and TCP is key to sustaining the new expansion cycle that we are currently going through, especially in Paraná,” said Roberto Bisogni.

About Brado

Brado is a reference in multimodal logistics services in Brazil. The company’s proprietary infrastructure consists of 19 locomotives, over 4,600 containers and 2,400 railcars, as well as pieces of equipment, warehouses and terminals, complemented by strategic alliances in leading consumption centers across Brazil. With its operations increasingly adapted to the needs of the import, export and domestic markets, Brado strives for excellence in container handling in Brazil, with the focus on multimodal integration.

About TCP

Inaugurated in 1998, TCP went through various cycles of investment in infrastructure and innovation, having received R$1.9 billion for improvements since 2000. At that time, its annual container throughput was around 250,000 TEUs; today, it is more than 1 million TEUs a year. 

Since 2018, the terminal has been controlled by the China Merchants Port Holdings Company (CMPort) group, the largest and most competitive port and terminal operator in China and the world, with over 50 terminals under control. Its current concession is valid until 2048.

Benefiting from the Belt and Road initiative, CMPort has been consolidating its position in important markets in recent years, with a portfolio that encompasses 50 ports across 25 countries and regions. In 2021, the company handled 136 million TEUs of containerized cargo and 613 million tons of bulk cargo, to register the world’s largest throughput.

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