The national government sent the draft tender documents (930-page document prepared by the National Ports Agency -Agencia Nacional de Puertos y Navegación), for the international bidding of the Hidrovía Paraguay-Paraná waterway to interested dredging companies. The concession will be granted under a public works scheme financed exclusively by tolls, with full entrepreneurial risk and no state subsidies. A 10-day period has been opened for companies to submit comments and observations. Once those are reviewed and incorporated (or rejected), the final text will be officially published in the Official Gazette (Boletín Oficial).

Below is a summary of the 10 key points of the draft terms and conditions:

1. Purpose and Type of Contract
   The tender aims to select a Concessionaire for the “modernization, expansion, operation and maintenance of the navigation signaling system and dredging, re-dredging and maintenance of the trunk waterway” from km 1238 of the Paraná River (Confluencia) to the Zone of Natural Deep Waters in the outer Río de la Plata (km 239.1 of the Punta Indio channel).
   The regime is a paid public-works concession financed by tolls, at the full risk of the concessionaire and without any state guarantee or subsidy. The tender is open nationally and internationally.
2. Term and Jurisdiction
   The concession will last twenty-five (25) years, with the possibility of one extension of up to 20% of the original term (i.e., maximum 5 additional years).
   Any disputes before the contract is signed will fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal Administrative Contentious Courts in the City of Buenos Aires.
3. Bid Structure
   Bids must be quoted exclusively in U.S. dollars. The process uses three envelopes:

• Envelope No. 1: Legal background, financial capacity and minimum technical requirements.
• Envelope No. 2: Work plan and general & specific technical experience.
• Envelope No. 3: Economic proposal with the Basic Toll rate.

4. Minimum Economic and Financial Requirements
   Bidders must prove (with audited financial statements of the last three fiscal years):

• Minimum Net Worth: > USD 300,000,000
• Minimum Total Turnover: > USD 450,000,000 in the last fiscal year
• Minimum Turnover in Dredging: Annual average > USD 300,000,000 over the last three years, with average annual EBT (earnings before tax) in dredging ≥ USD 30,000,000.

5. Minimum Technical Requirements and Certifications
   Bidders must demonstrate:

• Ownership of at least six (6) modern trailing suction hopper dredgers (built after 1994, max draft 8.5 m, minimum power 4,000 kW, and the four largest having combined hopper capacity ≥ 20,000 m³).
• Total dredged volume with own equipment ≥ 15,000,000 m³ in port and channel works.
• At least one project with monthly dredging ≥ 500,000 m³.
• Management of more than twenty (20) navigation aids/signals; otherwise the bidder is disqualified.
• Valid ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certifications (mandatory; lack of any disqualifies).
• Documented emission rating by recognized entities (also mandatory for qualification).

6. About the Bidders

• Companies controlled directly or indirectly by sovereign states or state agencies are prohibited from bidding or participating in consortia.
• Consortia must assume unlimited joint and several liability.
• The winning bidder must incorporate a Special Purpose Company (SPE) in Argentina before signing the contract.

7. Required Guarantees

• Bid Bond (maintenance of offer): USD 20,000,000 USD
• Performance Bond: 40,000,000 USD
• Bond for challenges/appeals: 10,000,000 USD

8. Evaluation and Scoring System
   Maximum total score: 200 points (80 points technical offer – Envelope 2; 120 points economic offer – Envelope 3).
   To reach the economic evaluation stage, a bidder must obtain at least 40 points in the technical evaluation.
   Stage 2 of the concession (the longest phase) carries the heaviest weight (up to 96 of the 120 economic points). Final ranking is determined by the highest Global Offer Score.
9. Economic-Financial Plan Requirements
   Bidders must prove the viability of their proposal, including:

• Firm financing commitment for at least 50% of the total investment planned for Stages 0, 1 and 2.
• The National Ports Agency will verify that projected profitability is “reasonable” (net profit vs. investment).
• Reference rates for calculating the present value of future income: IRR = 12.31%; WACC = 10.98%.

10. Additional Commitment for Port Dredging
    The concessionaire must offer dredging services to ports located along the trunk waterway using the unit price per m³ bid in the tender as the reference price. The National Ports Agency will facilitate framework agreements but assumes no financial responsibility for these side services.

“This is a historic milestone. The process has been extremely transparent, even including an environmental public hearing,” Gustavo Idagoras, president of the oilseed industry chamber (Ciara-CEC), told the press yesterday at the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange’s year-end event. He estimated that the concession should be awarded by May 2026.

According to Idagoras, the tender will trigger investments of approximately USD 3 billion, which will help the agribusiness reduce logistics costs and, within six years, allow vessels to leave Paraná River ports with 40-foot drafts instead of the current 34 feet.