ICTSI expands Brazil footprint with acquisition of 2 terminals

MANILA, Philippines — Logistics giant International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) has acquired another unit in Brazil for $130 million, taking over dry bulk ports handling agricultural imports.

ICTSI subsidiary ICTSI Americas B.V. yesterday signed a stock purchase and sale agreement to buy out HSIM Participacoes E Holding Ltda.

HSIM owns 100 percent of the operators of ATU12 and ATU18 terminals at the Port of Aratu in Bahia, Brazil, so the buyout means ICTSI is further expanding its presence in the country.

ATU12 sits adjacent to ATU18, and ICTSI wants to handle them both for their strategic purpose. They are operated under a long-term public lease, and have completed expansion works recently to support future traffic in the Port of Aratu.

By design, the terminals process the export and import of agricultural products. As such, ICTSI will elevate its role in agricultural trade in Brazil through the takeover of ATU12 and ATU18.

“The acquisition would expand ITCSI’s presence in Brazil and strengthen its participation in the country’s strategically important agricultural trade,” ICTSI said.

In total, ICTSI is acquiring the entire 33.5 million shares of HSIM at 19.41 Brazilian real each, for a total consideration of 650 million Brazilian real, or $130 million.

Further, ICTSI will make an earn-out payment of 100 million Brazilian real if certain milestones are achieved within 18 months from closing of the transaction.

ICTSI said the buyout is expected to yield increasing returns for shareholders. ICTSI has been on a buying spree in Brazil recently, adding companies to its portfolio to support its expansion plans in Latin America.

Last June, ICTSI acquired Sao Paolo-based Companhia Regional de Armazens Gerais e Entreposto Aduaneira. The company provides multimodal logistics and warehousing services, and ICTSI is using it to minimize transport bottlenecks in Brazil.

In 2025, ICTSI announced an investment commitment of as much as P10 billion to modernize the Rio Brasil Terminal, a project that would hike operational capacity by about 70 percent.

Once finished in 2029, the expansion will raise Rio Brasil Terminal’s capacity to 750,000 TEUs from 440,000 TEUs, turning it into Brazil’s maritime hub, particularly for its southeast and midwest regions.