Carriers awaiting the incoming government to provide relief on Mexican port challenges

Frustrated by infrastructure limitations that hinder Mexican ports from managing the increasing volume of traffic, ocean carriers are looking to the new government for solutions, particularly at the country’s main Pacific gateway.
Carriers have voiced growing concerns over the issues at Mexican ports, claiming they limit the country’s ability to handle the surge in business driven by nearshoring, from which Mexico is a key beneficiary.

At the recent AMANAC congress, the Mexican association of Shipping agents, speakers described the situation as dire and called for urgent action to boost capacity, especially at Manzanillo, Mexico’s largest port for international ocean freight.

One source reported that ships could wait up to five days to unload at major Mexican ports. Javier Moreira, country manager for CMA CGM, described the system as inefficient and expressed surprise at how much the company paid annually in delay fees.

The rapid traffic growth has strained port infrastructure. In the first eight months of this year, Mexican ports handled 6,221,334 TEU, an increase of 14.8%. Lazaro Cardenas saw the largest rise, with throughput up 34.9% to 1,586,838 TEU, followed by Veracruz on the east coast, up 16.5% to 884,682 TEU. At Manzanillo, volume increased by 8.5% to 2,602,946 TEU, with imports rising 15.4%.

Manuel Fernandez Perez, director general of SSA Marine Mexico, saw this growth as an opportunity for sustainable expansion, noting that 35% of Mexico’s imports arrive by sea. However, with ports becoming bottlenecks, urgent infrastructure upgrades are essential, emphasized carrier executives.

They stressed that addressing these issues requires more collaboration among stakeholders and, most importantly, more investment. Much of the attention is now focused on Manzanillo. Conference delegates urged the incoming government in Mexico City to prioritize expanding port capacity.

In 2019, the Office of Communication and Transport (now restructured) proposed expanding capacity at Manzanillo, including constructing five new terminals in the Bay of Cuyutlan, one of which could handle 1.75 million TEU annually. However, there have been no updates or further action since then. Some hope that president-elect Sheinbaum will prioritize logistics development.

There were also suggestions to restructure ASIPONA, the national port system’s administration. At AMANAC, Julieta Juarez, ASIPONA Manzanillo’s administrative director, announced the opening of new road access, increasing the port’s truck capacity from 1,000 to 6,000 per day, and new x-ray equipment to reduce inspection times from five minutes to 1.5 minutes. She also highlighted the benefits of the Safe Smart Platform, which has improved information exchange between users and ASIPONA.

Meanwhile, ASIPONA Manzanillo defended the presence of 15 anchored vessels (including two late containerships), stating that this did not indicate port saturation and that Manzanillo remains a leading global destination.