This year's Annual Review reports strong financial results, continued strategic progress and enhanced support for shipowners operating in an increasingly complex and uncertain global environment.
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As the Amazon River and its tributaries continue to endure record-low water levels, ports in the region struggle to sustain waterborne trade while ships experience prolonged delays. The drought may impact shipping activities, causing logistical and port delays in the region.
Correspondent Rabb Carvalho brings us updates below:
In recent weeks, new developments have emerged: while the Rio Negro is falling at a faster rate and municipalities in Amazonas are moving into alert and emergency status, DNIT is preparing preventive dredging works, carriers have announced surcharges for Manaus-bound cargo and private operators are reactivating contingency plans.
At the same time, the deadlock surrounding maintenance dredging on the Tapajós River in Pará remains unresolved. As one of Brazil's key corridors for soybean and corn exports, any significant reduction in navigability could affect millions of tons of cargo and add hundreds of millions of reais to logistics costs.
Read more here.
Correspondent Rabb Carvalho brings us updates below:
The possibility of a new severe drought in the Amazon has again placed river navigability at the centre of maritime, port and logistics planning. The risk of lower river levels, associated with the potential intensification of El Niño in the second half of 2026, reinforces the importance of preventive measures, particularly maintenance dredging carried out before the most critical stage of the dry season.
In this context, a recent decision by the Federal Court of Accounts (Tribunal de Contas da União – TCU) adds a relevant legal and operational element to the planning of waterway infrastructure in the region. The TCU determined that the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT) may not resume the tender for maintenance dredging on the Tapajós River before obtaining the relevant Prior Licence and carrying out Free, Prior and Informed Consultation with communities potentially affected by the project.
Read more here.
Correspondent Rabb Carvalho brings us updates below:
The possible formation of Super El Niño in the second half of 2026 has placed the Amazon waterways once again at the centre of Brazil’s logistics debate. The El Nino has potential effects extending into 2027.
The phenomenon may reduce rainfall, extend the dry season and cause impacts similar to those recorded in 2023, when historically low river levels affected navigation, supplies and cargo transportation in the region.
As river levels decline, vessels may be required to operate with reduced cargo volumes, which lowers logistics efficiency and increases transportation costs.
The scenario also increases the risk of wildfires, especially during the most critical stage of the dry season.
Read more here.
Correspondent Proinde brings us updates below:
While the rest of Brazil experiences its lowest average temperatures between June and September, the Amazon basin undergoes its hottest and driest period, historically referred to locally as the “Amazon Summer”. Although seasonal droughts are a recurring natural feature and navigation restrictions are generally predictable, the rapid escalation and severity of this complex climate phenomenon have increased significantly.
The impending rapid drops in river levels pose an immediate threat to the major navigable arteries of the Northern Arc ports, specifically along the Amazon, Madeira, and Solimões rivers. During previous severe droughts, maritime and waterway authorities were forced to implement drastic operational restrictions, including:
Draft reductions: Severe draft restrictions reducing vessel and barge carrying capacity by up to 50%.
Navigation bans: Prohibition of night navigation in critical river stretches, such as the Tobocal Passage and the mouth of the Madeira River.
As river levels fluctuate daily during a severe dry season, conditions can deteriorate rapidly. Shipowners, operators, and masters intending to fix vessels or transit the Amazon basin during this period should consider the following precautionary measures:
Maintain close liaison: Routinely check prevailing local draft limits, bathymetric updates, and regulatory notices with port agents and terminal operators prior to entering the river system, and maintain a continuous watch on VHF channel 16.
Review clearance requirements: Strictly adhere to the latest under-keel clearance (UKC) parameters issued by the local Captaincy of the Ports (CFAOC).
Monitor crew comfort: Ensure shipboard heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are fully operational and regularly maintained to comply with local labour mandates regarding extreme thermal discomfort during the peak dry season.
Updated charts and revised navigation equipment: Ensure nautical charts are up to date, and navigation equipment –including two independent operational radars and two working anchors– is tested and fully functional before entering or leaving the Amazon ports.
Heighten ship security: The Amazon region is highly susceptible to armed robbery, with boarding incidents increasing during the dry season. Ships and barge convoys –especially those carrying fuel products– are particularly vulnerable to attacks. Crews must remain vigilant for nearby convoys and small craft (such as barges, riverboats, mining rafts, and canoes), many of which are constructed from wood and are difficult to detect with standard shipborne navigation radar equipment.
Conduct rigorous contractual reviews: Given the severe draft constraints, shipowners and operators must thoroughly review charter parties, contracts of carriage, and logistics service agreements. Particular attention must be paid to clauses on partial loading, transhipment, deviation, waiting time, demurrage, force majeure, and the strict allocation of additional operational costs.
Read more here.
Correspondent Proinde brings us updates below:
With the onset of the ‘Amazon Winter’, which is actually the summertime wet season in the rainforest occurring from early December, barging and shipping operations up and down from the Atlantic coast the rivers port on the Upper Amazon have resumed, though the Amazon River and many of its tributaries have not yet returned to their pre-drought water levels.
Members should, therefore, check the actual water levels and any existing draft limitations with the local agents before the vessel arrives at Amazon’s North Bar.
Read recommendations and more here.
Correspondent Rabb Carvalho brings us updates below:
The state of Amazonas is experiencing an unprecedented drought, marking one of the worst environmental crises in the past 44 years. Governor Wilson Lima has declared a state of emergency across all 62 municipalities. According to the National Center for Monitoring and Alerting Natural Disasters (Cemaden), this drought threatens over 300,000 people, with severe consequences for public health, water supply, and transportation.
The drought in the Amazon does not only affect the environment; its consequences are being felt in transportation, health and the supply of essential resources.
Operational Restrictions due to these severe drought conditions, several navigation restrictions have been implemented:
Amazon River, Tabocal Passage, and Madeira River Estuary: Vessels should limit navigation to daytime operations when water levels are 1.4 times or less than the vessel's draft. Recommend to maintain the minimum speed required.
Under Keel Clearance (UKC): Minimum values are set at 0.5 meters for general cargo vessels and up to 1.0 meter for tankers carrying hazardous materials. Safety factors must be considered to ensure safe operations.
Recommendations for shipowners:
Monitoring river conditions daily.
Staying informed about local navigation restrictions and weather forecasts.
Adjusting operations and draft requirements to navigate safely during this period.
Read more here.
Correspondent Proinde brings us updates below:
The National Water and Sanitation Agency (ANA) has declared water shortages in the Madeira and Purus rivers and their tributaries, which are critical for navigation, hydroelectric generation, and public water supply. The measure was taken more than two months earlier than last year when the Amazon basin suffered its worst drought.
Recent reports from ANA and climatology institutes indicate that the upper Amazon accumulated below-average precipitation during the rainy season (from November 2023 to April 2024). This trend has continued into the current dry season, which started earlier than usual, and is expected to disrupt navigation to a similar or even greater extent than last year.
The drought hinders navigation in critical stretches, such as the mouth of the Madeira River, the confluence of the Solimões and Negro Rivers around Manaus, as well as downstream between Manaus and Itacoatiara, and on the Tapajos River between Itaituba and Santarém. Other regionally important waterways also suffer from drier-than-normal weather.
Container trade
Manaus, the largest metropolis in the Amazon region, hosts the busiest container terminals in northern Brazil, where containers shipped from Asia and North America and transhipped in Central American ports are offloaded and carried to other national ports down the East Coast of South America on feeder vessels. Manaus is also home to the Manaus Free Trade Zone (ZFM), where consumer products are manufactured or assembled for distribution throughout the country via cabotage. The capital of the state of Amazonas is also an essential hub for the distribution of food, medicines and fuels in the Western Amazon.
However, due to the severe drought reducing the carrying capacity of the ocean-going ships, effective 1 August 2024, carriers offering liner services in the Amazon, including Aliança (A.P.Mollen-Maersk), Log-In, ONE, Mercosul Line (CMA CGM Group), and MSC are levying a temporary Low Water Surcharge (LWS) on the freight of all containers to or from the port of Manaus. If the river levels continue to drop as forecasted, containership traffic may be halted in a few weeks. In this scenario, containers bound for or arriving from Manaus will need to be transported by barge through the port of Vila do Conde (Barcarena), on the mouth of the Para River, east of the Amazon.
Amid last year’s drought crisis, instead of relying on barging between Manaus and Vila do Conde, some operators diverted containers destined for those Amazon ports to alternative ports on the northeast coast, such as Pecém and Suape, for onward carriage once river levels rise.
Over 20% of all grain exports from Brazil are shipped from the Amazon ports of Itacoatiara, Novo Remanso, Santarém, Santana (Macapa), and Vila do Conde (Barcarena). Although the drought does not change the draft limits at the grain terminals in the latter two ports, they are also affected due to disruptions in the barging of grains down the barge stations of Miritituba (Itaituba) in the Tapajos River and Porto Velho, in the Madeira River.
Corn and soya bean exports are forecast to remain very high this year, with the oilseed predicted to break production and export records in the 2024/25 season, keeping Brazilian grain ports busy. However, it is uncertain how much the critically low river levels will upset the throughput of the riverine ports of the Amazon.
At the height of last year’s drought, barging operations became unviable due to shallow waters, so traders had to redirect agriproducts, chiefly corn, through alternative ports down the coast, such as Itaqui, Santos, Paranagua, and Rio Grande. These ports are accessible by rail and road year-long and, therefore, are not susceptible to the seasonality of the rivers as the Amazon ports.
Over 90% of Brazil’s operating bauxite mines are in Pará. Bauxite shipments depart from the private port facilities of Mineracoes Rio do Norte (MRN), located on the right bank of the Trombetas River, and Alcoa, on the Juruti River. Although these dedicated bauxite terminals operate throughout the year, both have sailing draft restrictions that should be verified during passage planning.
Barge convoys transport mineral and agricultural commodities between cargo transhipment stations in Porto Velho and Miritituba (Itaituba), as well as other ports in the Amazon waterways. During the upcoming dry season, barging operations will continue, but the payload is expected to be reduced by more than half due to exceptionally shallow waters. In extreme cases, navigation down the Madeira may be suspended altogether for specific periods.
Read more on Correspondent Proinde website here.
The national secretary of Waterways and Navigation, Dino Antunes Dias Batista, declared on Monday, 22 July, at an event at Brazil Export that the government's expectation is for a severe drought in the Amazon basin this year, and that they are working together with the National Department of Infrastructure (DNIT) to carry out dredging in strategic areas for waterway navigation in the Amazon arc corridors.
Correspondent Rabb Carvalho reports that several areas are already experiencing the effects:
Tarauacá River: Registered at 4.51 meters, affecting cities like Envira and Tabatinga.
Amazon River: Reached 11.43 meters, a decrease of 90 centimeters since its peak on June 10, impacting Itacoatiara.
Rio Negro in Manaus: Fell by 77 centimeters over 26 days, now at 26.07 meters. This rapid descent is alarming, especially after last year's record low of 12.70 meters, the lowest in over 120 years.
Rio Madeira: The river has reached its lowest historical levels for the month of July. At the Porto Velho and Jirau Jusante Beni stations, the recorded levels today—3.08 meters and 10.40 meters, respectively—are the lowest for this period .
Current Situation:
Drought and River Depths: The rivers are already lower than it was during the same period last year. Last year, the drought season caused significant navigation restrictions, making it impossible for vessels to reach Manaus port due to insufficient draft. This situation presented major challenges for the region, which we documented in several of our newsletters.
Potential Future Impact: The lower river depth at this time is a major red flag, indicating that the upcoming drought season could potentially be worse than last year, which was already the most severe in the past 100 years. If the drought conditions continue to worsen, we could see significant impacts on river navigation to Manaus Port, potentially leading to restrictions or even complete halts in navigation.
Current Navigation Conditions: As of now, there are no navigation restrictions in place, but the lower water levels are being closely monitored. Vessels should proceed with caution and stay updated on the latest conditions and advisories from local authorities.
As of now, 20 municipalities have declared a state of emergency. Authorities are actively monitoring the situation to mitigate the impact on affected communities.
