Posted on April, 14, 2025 at 04:28 pm
Brazil’s National Supply Company (Conab) has formed a partnership with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and Itaipu Binacional to strengthen and increase its operational efficiency by renovating and modernising grain warehouses in two states.
Itaipu Binacional, a partnership between Paraguay and Brazil that runs the hydroelectric plant at the Itaipu Dam, would provide US$10M in funding for UNOPS to conduct infrastructure assessments of Conab’s warehouses in Rolândia, Cambé and Ponta Grossa in Paraná state, and Maracajú in Mato Grosso do Sul, Conab said on 26 March.
The project was expected to improve the transportation of wheat and soyabeans from several states to the Port of Paranaguá, located 200km (124 miles) away, the company said.
Brazil is the world’s top soyabean producer and ranks among the top five largest grain producers globally, with farmers expected to significantly increase production again in 2025/26, according to a 1 April World Grain report.
Public company Conab said the modernisation would allow the company to increase grain storage capacity at the Ponta Grossa warehouse from 300,000 tonnes to 420,000 tonnes.
“Over the last few years, there has been a lack of care with Conab’s warehouses and structure, to the point that we have reduced the company’s storage capacity by more than 30%,” Conab chief executive Edegar Pretto said.
“Food prices are related to Brazil’s lost capacity to stockpile food. With this investment, we will modernise all machinery … and improve the supply infrastructure.”
UNOPS, the UN office specialising in infrastructure, would be responsible for executing the project, Conab said.
Scheduled to begin later this year, the first stage would include a diagnosis of the current warehouse infrastructure, the preparation and review of executive projects and the start of the contractor bidding process.
The renovations were expected to begin in April 2026 and would take about two years.
By significantly expanding the country’s grain storage capacity, the initiative will enhance supply management, help control inflation and reduce food prices for Brazilian consumers, according to the partners.
The facility was an important investment for the agricultural sector, particularly for family farming, by providing access to warehouses, Itaipu Binacional’s director in Brazil Enio Verri said.
Source: OFI