AreaBrazil

Commodity GroupOilseeds, oils and meals

CommoditySoybeans, grains

Date01/08/2017

Policy CategoryOther

Policy InstrumentTransport infrastructure

DescriptionAllocated funds for upgrading the last unpaved stretch of highway BR163, the key artery linking the State of Mato Grosso to Brazil’s newly opened ports on the north-Atlantic coast.

NotesBrazil’s Transport Ministry has allocated the sum of BRL 128.5 million (USD 41.2 million) for paving 65 km of highway BR-163, i.e. the last unpaved stretch of the key artery that links Mato Grosso state – the country’s Centre-west grain hub – to Brazil’s newly opened ports on the north-Atlantic coast. Based on government estimates, upon the works’ completion, Brazil’s northern export corridor (or ‘Arco Norte’) would absorb around one-fourth of Brazil’s aggregate maize and soybean production (see MPPU July’17). Industry sources, on the other hand, pointed to the need for additional investments in the region’s infrastructure. With northbound shipments from Mato Grosso depending on a single highway, the likelihood of temporary disruptions remains high, private sources opined (see also MPPU Aug.’17).