BRAZILIAN freight operator Brado Logistics, which specialises in containerised freight, carried 424,500 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) in 2022, up 21% from 350,750 TEU in 2021.
In 2023 the company, a subsidiary of Rumo, itself a subsidiary of the Cosan Group, expects to set a new record by increasing volumes by 16% and reaching around 494,000 TEU. According to the company’s commercial and marketing director, Mr Daniel Salcedo, growth should come from both domestic and foreign markets.
Freight volumes between Rondonópolis, in Mato Grosso, and the cities of Sumaré and Araraquara, in São Paulo, are estimated to rise by 9%. “In this flow, we transport special corn to serve the industries in the region,” Salcedo says. Tonne-km are expected to increase by 14%, as the return service to Mato Grosso will carry consumer goods from more than 40 customers.
Although the domestic market is a strategic priority for Brado, it only represents 30% of freight handled by the operator, although this has increased significantly in recent years.
“With the rise in sea freight during the pandemic, Brado invested heavily in consolidating the domestic market,” Salcedo says. “Before the pandemic, this represented only 10% of our business. The good news is that with the end of the pandemic, maritime freight is returning to previous levels, which means that we are seeing a recovery in the export market. At the same time, we have consolidated the domestic market.”
Brado has invested more than Reais 370m ($US 73.3m) in rolling stock, infrastructure expansion, technology, safety and operational improvements over the past five years. This year, the company plans to invest a further Reais 35m.
Foreign trade
After a two-year hiatus, the company carried 6700 tonnes of sugar in December 2022 and January 2023 and is receiving more requests for quotations, according to Salcedo, with traffic expected to increase to around 400 TEU per month from May to December, equivalent to almost 11,000 tonnes a month.
A growth rate of 10% is expected on the Paraná corridor from Ortigueira to the port of Paranaguá, where a major customer is the KBT logistics complex of major paper manufacturer Klabin.
Freight on the North corridor is expected to increase by 13%, largely due the modal shift of the cotton lint market, as well as the start of ore transport operations.
Investment in the cotton market has also boosted exports, with the area for loading lint at the Rondonópolis terminal expanded by 1800m² while two overhead cranes have been installed to unload trucks, increasing capacity from 45 to 99 containers loaded per day.
“In general, the objectives for 2023 are focused on continuing growth in the markets in which we operate, with a total focus on innovation, sustainability and the safety of operations and our employees. It is a moment of optimism for the company: we are stronger in the domestic market and with excellent perspectives in the foreign market,” Salcedo says.
