During the first years of the concession, Jan De Nul will deepen the navigation channel. This will allow larger vessels to access inland ports, improve logistics efficiency, reduce transport costs, and support export growth. Beyond dredging, the concession includes a comprehensive modernisation of navigation and monitoring infrastructure, including the replacement and maintenance of 1,150 navigation buoys and updating the existing system to monitor variables like water level, volume and speed. The concession will remain in effect for 25 years.
Description
The Belgian dredging company Jan De Nul, alongside its local partner Servimagnus, is projected to complete the critical infrastructure deepening and modernization phase by 2031, which is part of a larger $10 billion (€8.7 billion) 25-year concession. The total investment required to execute the full 25-year contract awarded by President Javier Milei’s administration is estimated at $10 billion. While the exact capital expenditure breakdown specifically isolated for the initial 2026–2031 window has not been explicitly disclosed in official government tenders, this initial 5-year phase represents the most capital-intensive segment of the contrac
History
Originally commercialized via a highly successful long-term private concession to Jan de Nul and Emepa in 1995, the contract transformed Argentina's agro-export efficiency. Following decades of private operation, the state's AGP took temporary control in 2021 amid geopolitical and regulatory re-evaluations, before structurally restructuring the contract into a refreshed 25-year sovereign concession framework in mid-2026. The 25-year Paraná River dredging tender by President Javier Milei’s administration triggered intense geopolitical lobbying, accusations of bias, and last-minute counter-proposals. US Representative Brian Mast alleged "harmful Chinese influence," with the losing consortium claiming Servimagnus had ties to Chinese state-owned enterprises.