A fire at Tiplam terminal in Santos, Brazil’s largest port, destroyed a conveyor belt and electric systems, leading to the suspension of sugar loading at piers 2 and 3, according to a company statement.
The fire started Thursday night and was extinguished by Friday morning with no reported injuries. The damage to the conveyor belt stopped loadings in the berths, as communicated in a note to VLI’s clients, reported Reuters.
The electrical infrastructure damage also forced the suspension of unloading operations for trains delivering sugar and other products to the port.
The company did not provide a timeline for when terminal operations would resume in their communication to clients. VLI’s press representatives were expected to respond to inquiries later on Friday.
According to shipping agency Williams’ lineup data, Tiplam had plans to load 13 vessels with 800,000 metric tons of sugar over the next two weeks, predominantly bound for China. Wilmar was noted as the primary shipper at the terminal during this period.
