Santiago, April 18, 2018 – The Alabama State Port Authority (ASPA), and AutoMobile International Terminal, a joint venture of SAAM Puertos S.A.—subsidiary of SM SAAM—and Terminal Zárate S.A., which belongs to the Argentinean group Murchison, signed a “Memorandum of Understanding” to develop a Ro-Ro terminal with capacity for up to 210,000 vehicles per year at the Port of Mobile in the United States.
The memorandum was signed in Buenos Aires by James K. Lyons, Director and CEO of the Alabama State Port Authority; Roberto Murchison, Chairman of Terminal Zárate S.A.; and Alberto Bórquez, Port Project Manager for SAAM Puertos S.A. The agreement calls for operating the terminal for up to 30 years with operations scheduled to start in late 2019.
James K. Lyons remarked that the agreement “represents a key step in diversifying the Alabama State Port Authority’s businesses while providing a strategic asset for automotive terminals and ship owners.”
Yurik Díaz, CEO of SAAM Puertos S.A., added, “This agreement represents an opportunity to work together with Terminal Zárate and ASPA, contributing our experience and know-how and, at the same time, continuing to consolidate our position in the region.”
Roberto Murchison commented that this project “will allow the Murchison Group and Terminal Zárate to continue expanding into new markets and diversifying their business matrix by partnering with SAAM to develop AutoMobile International Terminal in the State of Alabama.”
Tender Process
In 2016 ASPA began the process of requesting bids to identify a potential partner to operate the terminal, aimed at meeting growing demand in the region for importing/exporting automobiles manufactured in the United States and the Gulf of Mexico. The facilities will be especially designed to serve Ro-Ro (Roll on-Roll off) cargo, pre-delivery processes and automotive logistics on a 23-hectare lot and a wharf with a draft of 12.2 meters. The terminal boasts an excellent, strategic location with direct connections to five of the main Class 1 railroads that cover most of the United States, even reaching Canada, and with immediate access to two of the main interstate highways that cover the east-central United States.
