The Açu Harbor, from Prumo Logística, at the north coast of Rio de Janeiro, is entering a new phase market by the end of first construction phase and by cargo diversification. After iron ore, product that served as the basis for the harbor’s development, Açu will want to handle oil and is already operating with bauxite, as well as offering marine support services to the Bacia de Campos (Rio de Janeiro) platforms. This new cycle will be intensified from 2016, when more companies will start operating in Açu, allowing Prumo to increase cash flow while reducing investments, since a good part of the harbor’s infrastructure projects are deployed.
Now, Açu starts a period more focused on trading and attraction of costumers. The mall is ready and we are waiting to receive the stores, Eduardo Parente, CEO of Prumo Logística, jokes. Controlled by the American company EIG, Prumo is Açu’s owner, which is a project conceived by Eike Batista. After successive capital increases that ensured EIG the share of 74.3%, Eike’s were diluted and now has 0.26% of Prumo’s shares, although he no longer participates in the management since the entry of the Americans in 2013.
This year, Prumo must have revenue higher than 500 million BRL, considering a solid contract for iron ore shipments made by Anglo American in Minas Gerais and the renting of areas for several companies. Just the ore contract alone yields to Prumo 100 million USD per year. The renting of areas for clients currently generates 125 million per year. There are nine companies in Açu, part of them are operational, which is the case of Wärtsila, Technip, NOV and Intermoor, as well as the Multicargo Terminal (Tmult), from Prumo itself, all in the harbor’s terminal 2, dedicated to the service offering to the oil industry. This year, over than 100 ships already docked on Açu, between ore activities and offshore vessels.
Other operations will start next year. It’s the case of the BP-Prumo partnership, to handle the navigation bunker; and Edison Chouest, which will operate supporting the oil activities at the Bacia de Campos with a terminal featuring berths for mooring offshore ships, of which six will attend Petrobras. Another terminal that will start operating in 2016 is the Oil Terminal (T-Oil), which will perform transport operations for a first client: the British company BG. T-Oil belongs to Prumo Açu Petróleo’s subsidiary which had 20% of its capital sold to the German company Oiltanking for 200 million USD. Upon celebrating the contract, Oiltanking settled a value of 1 billion USD to Açu Petróleo. It’s a value higher than Prumo’s market price yesterday at BM&FBovespa, of 2.63 billion BRL (0.95 cents BRL per share). With the capital concentrated in the hands of shareholders, Prumo’s shares are illiquid nowadays.
Despite the growth, Prumo still works with negative cash flow and accounting loss, a normal situation for a company in deployment phase, said Eugênio Figueiredo, the company’s financial director. This condition, however, tends to change when Prumo begins to have a free cash flow upon increasing revenues and reducing investments. During the last three quarters, Prumo has registered a positive Ebitda [profits before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization], declared Figueiredo.
Prumo also resolved one of its projects major risks, the debt extension of 2.3 billion BRL to the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES). In the operation, the company managed to approve an additional loan of 500 million BRL, which will be onled by a financial agent from BNDES. The company is currently negotiating to define the onlending agent. Thus, equated the financing needs, including the issuance of a bonus of 200 million USD with a seven years deadline and interests of 8.5% per year signed by Brookfield Asset Management. This money is already on cash flow.
Figueiredo stated that Prumo managed good conditions upon accessing the debt market during a period of crisis in Brazil. Last year, the chairman of EIG’s board, Blair Thomas, visited Açu. EIG, which has other investments in Brazil, has a opportunity feeling in relation to Brazil. Since it took over Prumo, EIG compromised almost 3 billion BRL on the company. Açu is seem as an efficiency source for exporting companies that need to reduce logistics costs, says Parente.
On this new phase, oil transshipment operations at T-Oil will be one the priorities from August 2016. The contract with BG provisions a volume of 200 thousand barrels per day, with option to extend to 320 barrels per day. Along the investments still lacking on T-Oil, there is the dredging to increase the depth at the pier and access channel, a work that is expected to cost about 500 million BRL. However, this does not prevent the terminal from start operating in 2016 with Suezmax ships. In order to afford the remaining investments on T-Oil, Prumo will seek financing from multilateral banks abroad.
Prumo hopes to amplify the Multicargo Terminal operations, which has started to perform bauxite shipping to Votorantim and expects to handle importing coke and coal.
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