Against that backdrop, Ocean Network Express, or ONE, will implement an Inland Fuel Surcharge, or IFL/IFD, on carrier-haulage inland transport for all inbound and outbound shipments to and from Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, across all trades and services.

Effective date

Non-FMC-regulated trades: April 2, 2026
To and from Colombia: May 2, 2026
To and from Ecuador: May 2, 2026
FMC-regulated trades, Canada*: May 2, 2026

*United States, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, Saipan and Hawaii

See below for the applicable IFL/IFD surcharges by country and transport mode:

Source: ONE

MRS Logística and Ocean Network Express (ONE) have launched a new intermodal corridor connecting Paulínia, in São Paulo state, to the Port of Santos, Brazil’s main maritime gateway.

The solution is based on an integrated door-to-port model. Cargo is trucked from the Campinas industrial cluster to the Katoen Natie terminal in Paulínia, which operates as an inland dry port, then moved by rail for 213 km to Santos, where it is connected to ONE’s global shipping network.

After an initial shipment carried out in December 2025, the operation is currently in a testing phase using live cargo from a multinational chemical company, with expectations of reaching full capacity in the coming months.

The service was designed to meet the needs of sectors with demanding logistics requirements, including chemicals, perishables, consumer goods and industrial cargo, including special cargoes, expanding the potential use of rail in a market historically dominated by road transport.

Infrastructure and a shift in logistics

The Paulínia terminal plays a central role in the operation, providing specialized infrastructure for intermodal transfers between road and rail. By taking cargo off the congested highways of São Paulo’s interior, the new rail link is expected to improve logistics predictability and reduce CO2 emissions per TEU transported.

“We are helping more companies consider rail transport in their logistics chains. It is a solution that combines efficiency, sustainability and competitiveness in container transport,” said Marco Dornelas, commercial account manager for containers at MRS.

From ONE’s perspective, the project is a strategic step in the region. “The integration of rail transport allows us to optimize cargo flows between inland São Paulo and the Port of Santos, offering a more efficient alternative with lower environmental impact,” said Vivian Garcia, new business development manager for ONE Latin America.

More than just a new route, the project has scale potential. The solution could be expanded to new clients and cargo flows, reinforcing the role of rail in São Paulo’s hinterland and accelerating the adoption of intermodal models in one of Latin America’s most important industrial regions.

At a time of mounting pressure on costs, sustainability and operational resilience, this kind of modal integration is likely to gain traction, especially in geographies where dependence on road transport still limits supply-chain efficiency.

Source: Supply Magazine

The objective is to strengthen inland navigation, ensuring year-round navigability, greater operational safety, and improved logistical efficiency in the region.

The Minister of Ports and Airports, Tomé Franca, stated that the initiative reinforces inland navigation in the region. “The dredging of Lagoa Mirim is essential to ensure greater logistical efficiency, expand integration with neighboring countries, and boost economic development in southern Brazil,” he said.

The measure also strengthens integration between Brazil and Uruguay, facilitates the flow of goods, improves regional supply, and stimulates economic activities such as trade, services, and tourism, contributing to increased competitiveness and balanced economic development in the southern region.

Bidding opened at 10 a.m. this Wednesday in a public session on Compras.gov.br. The proposals will now be analyzed before the winning company is selected.

Why dredging is important

Dredging maintains adequate channel depth, enabling safe vessel navigation and preventing disruptions to waterway transport. With the natural accumulation of sediments, sections of the waterway may lose operational capacity, compromising the regularity and efficiency of navigation.

In southern Brazil, dredging Lagoa Mirim is strategic for logistics, increasing waterway transport capacity, diversifying transport modes, and reducing dependence on more expensive alternatives. With improved navigability conditions, the waterway becomes a more efficient, safe, and sustainable option for transporting cargo and passengers.

Source: MPOR

“The expansion of our rolling stock reinforces the continued strengthening of the East Corridor, which combines Minas Gerais’ rail tradition with Espirito Santo’s port vocation, opening routes for Brazil in the global market. The new locomotives strengthen that integration and allow us to offer an even more efficient, safe and low-carbon service for our clients’ logistics chain,” VLI Chief Executive Fabio Marchiori said.

The investments for ATF-C operations include the acquisition of locomotives and wagons, operational and structural adjustments, and the hiring of about 700 people in Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo.

With the new locomotives, VLI has now acquired 27 units since 2024 for operations on the FCA and on the northern stretch of the North-South Railway, which is also under the company’s concession.

Technology

The Evolution Series locomotives, produced by Wabtec in Contagem, Minas Gerais, are among the market’s most advanced and safest models for heavy-haul freight operations. They are equipped with high-efficiency diesel engines capable of operating on biofuels and can reduce fuel consumption, and therefore atmospheric emissions, by as much as 6% compared with other engines on the market.

The fleet incorporates Wabtec’s latest digital and safety technologies, including systems that monitor operator alertness, automatically manage speed and activate braking in high-risk situations. The locomotives also feature technologies designed to prevent accidents and continuously monitor critical operating parameters. Onboard systems track those parameters to increase both safety and asset availability.

“Delivering these locomotives to VLI is a source of great pride for Wabtec. We are committed to offering the best solutions to our customers by combining efficiency, reliability, safety and sustainability through lower-carbon logistics,” said Danilo Miyasato, president and regional leader of Wabtec Latin America.

ATF-C model

The move to operate as an ATF-C marks the beginning of VLI’s operations with its own trainsets along the Vitoria-Minas Railway. The Vale-controlled concession connects FCA’s East Corridor to the port system of Espirito Santo, handling cargoes such as grains, fertilizers, industrial inputs, and products from the steel and oil industries. About 22 million tonnes of cargo from VLI clients are transported annually along the EFVM.

Under the traditional model, general cargo transport used Vale locomotives and crews. With the new arrangement, VLI personnel and rolling stock will be able to provide general cargo service directly along the EFVM. The change gives VLI greater autonomy in scheduling and operating its trains, resulting in efficiency gains and fewer operational stops. Full implementation is expected by the second half of 2026.

Operations under the ATF-C model also stand out as an example of diversity at VLI, having begun with an entirely female supervisory structure, including both leaders and locomotive engineers. Women currently make up 30% of the area.

The new ATF-C model does not change Vale’s contractual obligations as concessionaire of the Vitoria-Minas Railway. Financial, investment, reporting and rail infrastructure maintenance responsibilities remain unchanged, as does responsibility for transporting passengers, general cargo and iron ore. The company said it remains committed to its employees and to society.

Source: VLI

A truckers’ strike could have dire consequences for Brazil, if it is widespread, as the country is heavily reliant on the drivers to ​transport products across the country and into ports.

In 2018, a ​massive truckers’ strike brought the country to a halt for ⁠about 10 days with numerous road blockades. As diesel prices surge, calls for ​a strike have taken shape, but without clear dates or any signal ​of the adherence level.

“It’s a fight for survival,” Wallace Landim, head of truckers’ union Abrava told Reuters in an interview, adding a strike could kick off this week.

The ​average price of S-10 diesel, the most widely sold type in ​Brazil, has risen around 19% nationwide since February 28, when the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran ‌began and ⁠lifted global oil prices, data from payments firm ValeCard showed on Tuesday.

It is not the first time since 2018 that drivers have attempted a wide strike, but Landim said past attempts were politically driven while now ​truck drivers are ​feeling “the same pain ⁠we felt in 2018.”

In a bid to soften the impact of higher global oil prices on consumers, President ​Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s government scrapped taxes on diesel ​last week, ⁠and Brazil’s oil regulator launched an operation to combat fuel price gouging.

But it is unclear whether the government’s efforts will be enough to prevent truck ⁠drivers ​from turning off their vehicles.

“Truck drivers are ​at their limit,” said Carlos Alberto, a director at CNTTL, a transport workers’ union, in a ​statement.

Reporting by Alberto Alerigi for Reuters

Arab countries in the Middle East such as Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates have the Gulf as their only or main maritime outlet, whose connection to the world is through the Strait of Hormuz, now closed due to the war between the United States and Israel and Iran. Saudi Arabia also has ports in the Gulf but has a western coastline on the Red Sea.

In its statement, MSC offers overland cargo transport from Asia via King Abdullah and Jeddah. It says the main destinations are Riyadh, the Saudi capital, and Dammam and Jubail, also in Saudi Arabia, as well as Bahrain, Kuwait, Hamad (Qatar), Jebel Ali and Abu Dhabi (UAE). Transit time ranges from one to five days, depending on the destination.

In the statement announcing the suspension of bookings to the Middle East, the company said they would resume once the situation improved. In recent days, MSC has formally declared “voyage termination” for certain export shipments under its custody and control with origin and destination in the Gulf. The term means the goods may be unloaded at safe ports before the final destination, where they are made available to customers.

As it did with the overland cargo service in Saudi Arabia, on March 5 the company also announced on its website an overland cargo service from Asia and the Mediterranean bound for Iraq. The goods are transported via Turkey, which has a Mediterranean coastline. The company says the main destinations are Zakho, Dohuk, Mosul, Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Baghdad.

Source: ANBA

With the bid deadline passed, the government opened the envelopes and will now assess three contenders to operate the corridor: Belgium’s Dredging, Environmental & Marine Engineering (DEME), Belgium’s Jan De Nul, and Brazil’s DTA Engenharia.

Milei’s plan is to privatize, for 25 years with an option to extend for another five, the maintenance and operation of the Argentine stretch of the main navigation channel, known locally as the Vía Navegable Troncal (VNT) and more widely as the Paraná-Paraguay waterway. The route links river ports in Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay to the Atlantic Ocean along a continuous 3,400-kilometer navigation system.

About 4,500 ocean-going vessels transit the corridor each year, and more than 80% of Argentina’s export volume moves through it, including agro-industrial products and automotive output, according to the government.

The tender, launched in December, covers operations, toll collection, maintenance, marking and dredging works along the waterway, from kilometer 1238 of the Paraná River at its confluence with the Paraguay River to the deep-water area of the Río de la Plata. It also includes technology investments aimed at improving navigation speed.

Argentina’s 1,400-kilometer section was run for 25 years by a private consortium formed by Belgium’s Jan De Nul and Argentina’s Emepa. When that contract expired in 2021, the Peronist government of Alberto Fernández (2019-2023) returned control to the state, though Jan De Nul continued operating the corridor as a state subcontractor. Emepa, meanwhile, was linked to the so-called “Notebooks” corruption case, in which prosecutors said the company’s owner, Gabriel Romero, allegedly paid bribes to secure a 2010 extension of the concession.

After Milei took office, his administration sought to return the corridor to private hands and launched a tender in November 2024 that drew accusations of a lack of transparency. Eleven firms expressed interest, but when bids were opened only one formal offer had been submitted, from DEME, which had been among the strongest critics of the process and said the terms were skewed. The government then voided the tender and opened an investigation to determine whether DEME pressured competitors or whether an illicit pact harmed the state and Argentine producers.

Tender under U.N. oversight

The government said the terms for the new tender were drafted with support and auditing from the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), which it said ensured transparency. In an official statement, the administration said the cooperation with the U.N. body would ensure the award process follows competitiveness criteria that directly benefit the national economy, and highlighted the role of business chambers and provincial governments along the corridor.

Among the main changes from the previous tender, the concession period was reduced from 30 years, with a possible 30-year extension, to 25 years with an option for five more. Reference prices were also cut to $3.8 from $4.5 per net registered ton (TRN).

“This tender guarantees at least a 10% reduction in dollar terms in logistics costs from day one,” said Iñaki Arreseygor, executive director of Argentina’s National Ports and Navigation Agency. He said the scope of works also includes greater depth targets and adds the province of Entre Ríos to the route.

The government estimates the evaluation of bids will take about three months, and that the winning bidder will take control within 60 to 90 days after the award. “We should reach the second half of the year with a new operation,” Arreseygor said.

Even so, questions remain over the process. One criticism is that awarding more than 1,400 kilometers to a single operator would create an “inefficient monopoly” given the scale of the task, an argument Milei’s team rejects as driven by parties seeking a share of the business. Another concern is the absence of explicit “depth targets” that would allow modern bulk carriers to sail fully loaded and avoid costly calls at other ports.

Government officials say the tender contemplates the maximum depth that existing studies allow bidders to price, while leaving open the possibility of renegotiation to reach greater depth, based on new analyses that would determine conditions on the riverbed below the levels already surveyed.

Source: El País

The company moved 9.0 billion tonne-kilometers (TKU) of soybeans during the year, up from 8.2 billion TKU in 2024. The figure represents a 67% increase compared with 2020, underscoring the importance of the company’s integrated logistics system in supporting the growth of Brazilian agribusiness.

The Northern Corridor connects the states of Maranhão and Tocantins and captures cargo from across the Matopiba agricultural region — comprising Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Bahia.

“The growing results achieved by VLI in the region reflect our commitment to operational excellence, planning and safety,” said Gabriel Fonseca, VLI’s general commercial manager for grains and fertilizers. “Infrastructure is essential to ensure Brazil remains a key supplier of commodities to global markets while strengthening the national economy.”

In addition to soybeans, the corridor handles commodities such as fuels, corn, corn and soybean meal, pulp and pig iron.

Over a ten-year period from 2015 to 2024, total cargo volumes transported by VLI in the region rose from 5.8 billion TKU to 14.4 billion TKU, an increase of nearly 150%.

To support cargo flows, the Northern Corridor operates trains of up to 240 railcars in a configuration known as “tricotrol,” consisting of three blocks of 80 wagons, each pulled by its own locomotive.

The train can carry up to 30,000 tonnes in a single trip, significantly boosting productivity and efficiency in transporting harvests from the region.

The tricotrol system also offers improved energy efficiency and helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to VLI, the train records emissions of 2.85 kg of CO₂ per liter of diesel, about 12% lower than the 3.2 kg average for conventional train configurations.

Preparations for the 2026 crop

VLI’s integrated logistics network is already operating at full capacity to handle soybean exports from the 2026 harvest.

Brazil’s main agricultural export commodity is transported through the company’s three main logistics corridors: Southeast and East — which use the Centro-Atlântica Railway to access the Port of Santos and ports in Espírito Santo — and the Northern Corridor.

“The concentration of harvesting in the first quarter increases pressure on transportation, especially along longer routes,” Fonseca said.

“The integration between railways, terminals and ports brings greater predictability and efficiency for customers during the period of highest logistical competition, ensuring grain reaches ports reliably while also reducing emissions.”

Source: VLI

The result marks the third consecutive annual record for rail freight volumes in Brazil and is part of the federal government’s strategy to expand national logistics infrastructure. For 2026, the government plans to hold eight rail auctions, with projected investments of 140 billion reais ($27.7 billion). Total investments in the sector are expected to reach 600 billion reais over time.

“For the third consecutive year we have broken the record for cargo transported by rail in Brazil, at a time when we are also seeing historic levels of private investment in the sector,” said Leonardo Ribeiro, national secretary for rail transport.

“These results show that planning, regulatory predictability and dialogue with the market are producing concrete outcomes. But there is still much to do, and we intend to move further forward with the National Rail Policy,” he added.

The ministry said its efforts have focused on improving land-based logistics chains so that commodities moving across the country can use infrastructure that offers lower costs and greater efficiency.

For long-distance routes, for example, grain produced in Mato Grosso — Brazil’s largest agricultural state — can be transported by rail to ports in the Southeast, reducing truck traffic on highways and lowering greenhouse gas emissions.

Data compiled by state-owned logistics company Infra S.A. show that the agricultural sector posted the strongest growth in rail shipments in 2025, rising 4.62%, followed by other cargo categories, which increased 3.43%.

Iron ore remained the dominant commodity, totaling 401.35 million tons transported by rail, up 2.72% from the previous year.

“The expansion of rail freight highlights the strategic role of this transport mode amid the continued growth of economic activity,” Ribeiro said. “It is not just a trend but a crucial logistics infrastructure for the country’s development in the coming years.”

Rail concessions and investment

Brazil currently has 14 active rail concessions and is working to advance projects that stalled under previous administrations. The government has introduced the first National Rail Concessions Policy, aimed at enabling the largest pipeline of rail assets to be auctioned.

The ministry also issued the first rail authorization after revising Brazil’s rail regulatory framework in 2023.

Under the new concession model, the government said investments of about 140 billion reais will be guided by planning, governance and sustainability principles while maintaining fiscal responsibility.

Authorities are also developing solutions for five rail concessions nearing the end of their contracts: Malha Sul (covering São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul), Malha Oeste (Mato Grosso do Sul and São Paulo), Ferrovia Centro-Atlântica (spanning several southeastern and northeastern states), Ferrovia Tereza Cristina in Santa Catarina, and the Transnordestina Logística network in the Northeast.

In parallel, the Ministry of Transport submitted guidelines to the National Land Transport Agency (ANTT) for the first public call to revive idle rail segments. The initiative will offer the Minas–Rio corridor — currently classified as an inactive line — to private investors.

The program could help restore up to 10,000 kilometers of Brazil’s federal rail network.

Rail investment has also accelerated in recent years, with about 40 billion reais invested between 2023 and 2025 — roughly 60% more than the 25 billion reais invested between 2019 and 2022.

One of the key projects is the Transnordestina railway in northeastern Brazil, where construction resumed in 2023. The project is about 71% complete and is expected to cost around 15 billion reais, of which 11.3 billion reais have already been invested.

The government expects the first phase of the railway to be completed in 2027, with the second phase scheduled for 2028.

Source: Informativo dos Portos