About us
Our History
Until 1974, the sole P&I correspondents in the ports of Santos and Rio de Janeiro in the Southeast of Brazil were the Figueiredo Group, a then large regional organization comprising among their range of activities shipping agency, customs brokering, warehousing, freight forwarding, etc.
As the business grew and the P&I side required a fully dedicated and specialized staff to couple with the increasing amount of work, in 1975, the Figueiredo Group decided to set up a company fully devoted to the representation of P&I clubs in the region, resulting in the formation of Representacoes Proinde Ltda. in downtown Santos and the opening of a branch office in Rio de Janeiro. The name Proinde stands for Protection and Indemnity.
While it was part of the Figueiredo Group of companies, the newly founded company enjoyed complete autonomy in handling P&I matters and, at the same time, gained considerable expertise due to its proximity to a group with such a large range of activities in the shipping industry.
Despite the good relationship with the mother company, Proinde needed administrative and financial independence to invest in training and remain competitive in this ever-changing market.
Although the Figueiredo Group perceived such a necessity, they decided to focus on other aspects of shipping and, early in 1993, the control and ownership of Representacoes Proinde Ltda. was fully transferred to its present management, whereas the branch office in Rio de Janeiro was closed down and replaced by a connected but independent company, Representações Proinde (Rio) Ltda. in 1993.
In response to the needs of some of our principals, in 2005, Proinde extended its network of offices, establishing Representações Proinde (Nordeste) Ltda. and Representações Proinde (Norte) Ltda., in the ports of Recife and Manaus, respectively, the former to serve Brazil’s Northeastern Region and the latter the river ports and terminals in the upper Amazon. In 2018, we opened an office in Barcarena (Vila do Conde) near Belem, Representações Proinde (Belem) Ltda. In 2023, Representações Proinde (Sao Luis) Ltda. was set up in São Luis to attend the port of Itaqui to enhance the rendering of P&I services in Brazil’s Northern Arc ports.
After nearly half a century of existence dealing with shipping-related problems for leading marine insurers and shipowners, our company accumulated substantial expertise and practical experience in the P&I representation and remains committed to the purpose that led to its creation.
