• 3 min de lectura
• 3 min de lectura
The recent confirmation of the Environmental Qualification Resolution (RCA) for the Costanera site, part of the Valparaíso port expansion project, marked the beginning of a new stage for this infrastructure initiative. Following this milestone, Empresa Portuaria Valparaíso (EPV) has projected to launch the tender for the plan during the second half of 2027.
In this regard, PortalPortuario spoke with Franco Gandolfo, General Manager of EPV, who provided details of the schedule established by the state-owned company to carry out the expansion of the maritime facility.
When asked about the current status of the initiative, Gandolfo stated that "today we are advancing on several fronts, one of them has to do with the engineering projects and environmental processing of what accompanies the port expansion."
"This year we obtained the Environmental Qualification Resolution for the Costanera site, therefore, we continue in that process generating certainty in the market. This year, in the second half, we will enter environmental processing with the other components of the port expansion project, which is the development of the new preferential-use cruise pier, the San Mateo esplanade, and the 120-meter extension of fronts 1, 2, and 3," added the general manager.
Regarding the deadlines for the start of the tender for works, the EPV executive provided an estimate, however, he stressed that it is not something that is in the hands of the company.
"Our expectation is to open the tender during the course of 2027 (second half), but we depend on the resolution that the Tribunal for the Defense of Free Competition (TDLC) has to issue; a process that began more than two years ago, therefore, we believe that we are already on the verge of finishing that instance, a deadline that does not depend on EPV," he indicated.
In addition, Gandolfo added that "we are awaiting the resolution and we are moving forward on all fronts according to our schedule, in order to launch a new tender for the port concession as soon as possible."
Regarding the citizen complaints that have existed during the processing, the general manager of the state-owned company stated that "we have been working for many years in a very broad process of conversation with the different institutional and citizen instances of Valparaíso and what we have been building is a broad consensus. Today the city of Valparaíso has the maximum institutional and citizen consensus regarding its port expansion project and it is progressing very well in this regard."
"There are always sensitivities in these projects that are discussed, and there are formal instances for people to express their judgment and visions, such as citizen participation processes or claims within the framework of environmental procedures," Gandolfo stressed.
Electrification of the future Costanera Site
Within the framework of the recent alliance signed between EPV and Chilquinta to promote the electrical reconversion of port operations, Franco Gandolfo anticipated that the energy supply for the future site is considered in the aforementioned agreement. "That space also demands energy and that supply is resolved by Chilquinta through the agreement," he added.
"Every new work built in the port must be zero emission in terms of energy, therefore, as the new works of the port expansion are built, we will also advance in the decarbonization process," concluded the general manager of EPV.
