VPorts, the only private port in Brazil, invests over R$ 500 million and connects to the railway.

VPorts, the only privately owned port authority concession in the country so far, which operates three ports in Espírito Santo, will invest more than R$ 500 million by 2027 to expand its cargo handling capacity by 80% within a five-year period.

Traditionally, Brazilian ports are publicly managed through so-called "dock companies," but the case of Espírito Santo is an exception. With a three-year concession, the private operator manages three ports in Espírito Santo: Vitória, Vila Velha, and Barra do Riacho (in Aracruz). During this period, it has already invested R$ 1.5 billion in expanding and modernizing the infrastructure of its three operations.

And, this year alone, it anticipates the delivery, still in the first half of 2026, of a rail system integrated with the Port of Vitória that should provide greater efficiency and productivity gains to the three ports managed by the company.

With investments already contracted of R$ 114 million, an internal section of the port of Vitória will connect to the Estrada de Ferro Vitória a Minas railway, which in turn has a connection to the Centroatlântica (VLI) railway. Grains such as soybeans and corn, as well as fertilizers and pig iron, will be transported through this logistics corridor.

For this purpose, a 17-year contract was signed with the company Multifit for the construction of a railway structure for unloading pig iron in partnership with VLI, which will handle the cargo operation.

“With this integration between the port and the rail operation, we will reduce logistics costs, and this connects us economically with the Midwest,” says Gustavo Serrão, president of Vports, to NeoFeed . “We are offering it as a logistics option for the country's development.”

The expansion and improvement of the port's service infrastructure are part of Vports' strategy, which also expects to inaugurate a container reception area by June, whose renovation works are being finalized. The area is being expanded by 70%, with investments of R$ 35 million.

Serrão also mentions that an increase in liquid bulk storage capacity is planned for 2027 near the port of Vila Velha (ES), budgeted at R$ 400 million. Construction has already begun this year.

Finally, the company is still awaiting an environmental license from the state agency of Espírito Santo to implement a "greenfield" project at the Barra do Riacho terminal for solid and liquid bulk cargo, fuels, and gas.

“We are expanding procedures and we intend to start this 'green field' investment by the middle of this year to begin commercial operations next year, but this still depends on licensing,” explains the executive.

By 2025, the company had also expanded its capacity to receive heavier ships, up to 83,000 tons – previously the port could only accommodate vessels up to 70,000 tons.

Unique model

Vports is the result of the privatization of the Espírito Santo Port Authority (Codesa), which was acquired in 2002 by the Shelf 119 Private Equity Investment Fund, managed by Quadra Capital.

The model was launched by the now-defunct Ministry of Infrastructure, under Minister Marcelo Sampaio, but its development began during the administration of Tarcísio de Freitas (currently governor of São Paulo). The asset belongs to the federal government, but the 100% private operator will be able to exploit the concession for 35 years.

“Since our first year, we have been planting and harvesting. I understand that the model is now consolidated and the company has already proven itself sustainable. With all this learning, we have made a plan to increase productivity and the company is financially healthy,” adds Serrão.

Vports, however, is overseen by Antaq and must adhere to a set schedule for investments.

Results so far

According to the company's most recent figures, the volume of cargo handled at the ports of Vitória and Vila Velha in January of this year registered a 15% increase compared to the same month in 2025, reaching 700,000 tons.

The highlights were imports and the movement of solid bulk cargo in general (fertilizers, pig iron, machinery and equipment), which totaled 352,000 tons in the first month of the year, an increase of 28% compared to the previous year.

“In addition to adapting to market needs, 2025 was a year of establishing long-term partnerships that will enable our multimodality, with the start of rail operations in 2026,” highlights Serrão.

Last year, the three ports in Espírito Santo managed by Vports handled 7.9 million tons of cargo, with imports standing out, hitting a new port record of 5.3 million tons, a 9% increase compared to 2024.

The most handled cargoes were solid bulk cargoes, which reached 3 million tons, corresponding to 38% of all the port's volume. This performance was driven by imported products, such as coal and bituminous coal, which saw a 90% increase in volume handled compared to the previous year; petroleum coke (up 55%); and fertilizers (up 8%).

Another cargo type that has been exceeding expectations at the Espírito Santo port complex is automobiles. Last year, VPorts recorded a record volume of 49,600 cars entering through Vitória, in partnership with Comexport.