Due to its location and infrastructure development, the port provides services to various productive sectors.
Recently, the Port of Brownsville entered the ranking of the 50 most important seaports in the United States. Its performance during 2023 represented an increase, since the total cargo tonnage in the port increased to 17.8 million tons, 17% more than the 15.2 million tons in 2022.
It is the most important port for international trade between the United States and Mexico, since more than 90% of the logistics carried out is dedicated to exports and imports to and from Mexico. “Thanks to its infrastructure, systems and cargo handling policies, there are no congestion or delays, this gives great competitiveness to the Mexican industry and adds value to the logistics chains,” Guillermo Rico Leal, sales manager of the Port of Brownsville, explained in an interview for T21.
Today, the Port of Brownsville is a key player in the relocation of production chains (nearshoring) since it helps with the logistics and movement of inputs, for example, steel. “But in addition to logistics at the port, we have an important industrial development with more than six thousand hectares. We have a project from a company from Monterrey that is installing a plant to manufacture steel pipes, we also have a project for a lubricants plant, a flour plant, providing services to the Ternium slab plant, among other projects,” explained Rico Leal.
The expansion projects also include the construction of an industrial park of more than 48 hectares to receive new plants and investment in infrastructure such as the draft of the canal to allow larger ships to enter.
The sales manager of the Port of Brownsville explained that work is being done to take advantage of the nearshoring phenomenon and bring the industry closer to the region of Texas and the northeast of Mexico, in addition to working to generate sources of employment, “the projects we have will create more than 10 thousand new sources of work next year.”
Although the Port of Brownsville is located in the United States, its proximity to Mexico and its dynamic commercial exchange require facilitation for Mexican industry and international projects that want to be installed in Mexico, in addition to resuming some that have been paused, such as wind power projects.
“There is a lot we can do for Mexico, but it is not in our hands. We play by the rules that the Mexican government sets, but unfortunately many projects cannot be realized today. We hope that conditions will improve and Mexican companies will be encouraged,” said the port spokesman.
Currently, the port moves approximately 18 million tons annually, and it is projected that this will increase to 20 million in the next two years. However, it is predicted that in the next 10 years, between 70 and 80 million tons of merchandise will be moved, distributed among the markets of Mexico, Europe and Asia.
Source: t21
