Operational drafts in the Port of Santos

Following the latest hydrographic and bathymetric surveys, the Maritime Authority allowed changes to the operational drafts at Latin America’s largest port complex

On 28 January 2025, the Santos Port Authority updated the current draft and trim limitations applicable to the navigation channel and the berths of the Port of Santos, as detailed in the tables below.

Draft limitations at berths

Location			Depth (m)	Ship’s draft (m)			Maximum draft (LT/HT) at navigation channel (m)
BERTH	BOLLARDS	LOA	PROJECT	LOW TIDE	HIGH TIDE1
ALAMOA 01	09/15	307	12.70	12.40	12.70	SECTION IV 12.70/13.70
ALAMOA 02	16/22	307	12.70	12.40	12.70
ALAMOA 03	23/30	272	12.70	12.40	12.70
ALAMOA 04	30/36	272	11.70	11.40	11.70
BTP 01	01/16	354	15.00	14.20	14.50	SECTION IV 13.50/14.50
BTP 02	16/31	354	15.00	14.20	14.50
BTP 03	31/45	400	15.00	14.20	14.50
AGEO SP	11/21	230	15.00	12.00	12.30
AGEO 01	01/11	230	15.00	11.90	12.20
ILHA BARNABE SP	455/446	215	10.30	10.00	10.30
ILHA BARNABE BC	446/437	215	10.30	10.00	10.30
SABOO 01	41/48	184	10.70	10.40	10.70
SABOO 02	48/56	200	10.70	10.40	10.70
SABOO 03	56/64	202	10.70	10.40	10.70
SABOO 04	64/71	184	13.20	11.90	12.20
SABOO CORTE	72/80	197	11.70	10.30	10.60
VALONGO	A/L	320	15.00	13.40	13.70
SHED 12-A4	160/168	215	12.50	(2)	(2)	SECTION III 13.50/14.50
SHED 13/14	168/175	216	11.30	10.90	11.20
SHED 15	175/181	198	11.30	10.90	11.20
SHED 16/174	182/192	267	13.50	13.20	14.20
SHED 194	192/203	270	13.00	13.00	14.00
SHED 20/214	203/213	251	13.00	12.90	13.90
SHED 22/23	213/223	256	15.00	13.80	14.10
CURVE 23	223/229	172	8.30	7.20	7.50
SHED 25	229/239	305	8.30	8.30	8.60
OUTEIRINHOS 034	53/29	305	15.00	13.50	14.50	SECTION II 13.50/14.50
OUTEIRINHOS 02 (NAVY)	29/15	210	15.00	14.20	14.50
OUTEIRINHOS 01 (NAVY)	15/01	210	15.00	14.00	14.30
SHED 29	275/284	229	11.70	11.40	11.70
SHED 30	284/293	225	11.70	11.40	11.70
SHED 31	293/303	260	11.70	11.40	11.70
SHED 32	303/313	248	11.70	11.40	11.70
SHED 33	313/323	253	11.70	11.40	11.70
SHED 34	323/333	263	11.703	11.403	11.703
SHED 35.1	333/342	238	13.50	13.20	13.50
SHED 35.2	342/352	260	13.50	13.20	13.50
SHEDS 37.1 & 37.24	366/379	374	13.70	13.40	14.40
SHED 384	379/391	319	13.70	13.50	14.50
SHED 394	391/401	289	13.70	13.50	14.50
TEAG4	–	174	13.00	12.70	13.70
TEG4	–	168	13.00	13.00	14.00
TERMAG	409/416	277	14.20	(4)	(4)
TGG4	402/409	277	14.20	13.40	14.40
TECON 3	394/412	366	15.00	14.20	14.50
TECON 2	412/427	367	15.00	14.20	14.50
TECON 1.2	427/437	245	16.00	14.20	14.50
TECON 1.1	437/448	220	16.00	14.20	14.50
TEV	448/464	310	16.00	14.20	14.50

Draft limitations at the navigation channel

Maximum operational draft at the navigation channel (zero DHN*)
Channel Section		Vessel’s draft
		Low tide (m)	High tide1 (m)
I	From the anchorage to the fishing terminal at Ponta da Praia	13.50	14.50
II	From the fishing terminal to the passenger terminal	13.50	14.50
III	From the passenger terminal to Shed 6	13.50	14.50
IV (a)	From Shed 6 to Alamoa terminal	13.50	14.50
IV (b)	From Alamoa terminal to the end of Section IV	12.70	13.70

_{* Brazilian Navy’s Directorate of Hydrography and Navigation (DHN)}

Remarks

1. High tide presents maximum draft values for any high tide height ≥ 1.0 (one) metre.

2. Shed 12-A:

Distance from the quay	Board	Low tide (m)	High tide (m)
Without fenders	Starboard side	10.10	11.10
With fenders (≥ 5.0 m)		12.40	13.40

3. Shed 34:

Bollards	Project draft (m)	Low tide (m)	High tide (m)
323-325	11.70	11.40	11.70
325-333	13.50	13.20	13.50

4. NAABSA Clause: The operational drafts of ships in berths that operate with solid bulk that had a favourable assessment of the background study by the Captaincy of the Ports of São Paulo (CPSP) are disclosed in compliance with the NAABSA [Not Always Afloat But Safely Aground] Clause.

The maximum values of operational drafts in berths are limited to the maximum operating draft of the section of the navigation channel in which they are located.

The maximum air draft for berths and navigation channel upstream of the Outeirinhos 03 berth is 67.5 m in relation to zero DHN.

Vessel’s deadweight	Minimum draft FWD	Maximum trim AFT	Minimum propeller immersion
DWT ≤ 10,000	≥ 2.5 m	2.5 m	100%
10,001 ≤ DWT ≤ 20,000	≥ 3.0 m	2.5 m	100%
20,001 ≤ DWT ≤ 50,000	≥ 3.5 m	3.0 m	90%
50,001 ≤ DWT ≤ 80,000	≥ 4.0 m	1.5% LOA	90%
80,001 ≤ DWT ≤ 100,000	≥ 5.0 m	0.7% LOA	90%
100,001 ≤ DWT ≤ 200,000	≥ 6.3 m	0.7% LOA	90%
DWT > 200,000	≥ 7.5 m	0.7% LOA	90%

Source of information

Santos Port Authority website [retrieved 30/01/2025] based on CPSP’s Ordinance nos. 44/CPSP-MB & 43/CPSP-MB of 23 January 2025.

Published 22/08/2022. Updated 30/01/2025.

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