Coatzacoalcos, Port History

Located in the Gulf of Mexico´s side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Coatzacoalcos (now known as COATZAPORT), was created by a government decree on October 8th, 1825.
In 1858, the sea route between New Orleans-Minatitlán was inaugurated by the american cargo ship named “Quaker City”, and by 1896, dredging works on the sand barrier and the port’s entrance channel began. 1905 marked the beginning of the construction of wharves and warehouses. The seaport works at the time, were related mainly to oil industry development projects in the region.

Also as important, started since 1857, was the construction of the land-bridge railway system of 188 miles, connecting Coatzaport with the pacific coast through the new Port of Salina Cruz (established in 1908); and the construction of the first oil refinery in Mexico, located in the neighboring town of Minatitlán in 1906.

By 1908 the county of Coatzacoalcos could be considered as an economically privileged area mainly identified with the oil industry and commercial activities.
The Mexican Civil War that broke out in 1910 and the inauguration of the of the Panama Canal in 1914, originated a stale-mate situation for commercial activity between Coatzaport and Salina Cruz. Nevertheless, Coatzacoalcos was able to keep its privileged economical level due to the oil and agricultural activities.
Later on, after the ending of the Civil War in the early twenties, works started on the oil pipeline from Minatitlán to Salina Cruz, same that ended in 1939, together with the improvement and expansion of the oil refinery at Minatitlán in 1956.

The construction of the first road & rail bridge that connects the left margin of the river Coatzacoalcos with the right margin at the “Pajaritos” PEMEX Terminal took place in 1968.
In the seventies, the state–owned company PEMEX performs its first crude oil export from the terminal of “Pajaritos” (1974) and the Port Authority of Coatzaport began the construction of fluids and bulk terminals for chemicals, grains and minerals.

In the eighties, what stands out were first: the reconstruction of customs warehouses & docks altogether with the construction of berth number 8 at the Port Authority Terminal, and second: the conclusion of the Cangrejera and Morelos petrochemical complexes of PEMEX at “Pajaritos” Terminal.

In the last decade of the XX century the following facts were considered as relevant: the change of management of the Port Authority from the state-owned company “Servicios Portuarios del Istmo de Tehuantepec S. A. De C. V.”, to the also state-owned “Administración Portuaria Integral de Coatzacoalcos, S. A de C. V.”, ( Integral Harbour Administration ) on July 25th 1994. This gave the Port Authority a more flexible scheme to promote private investment & businesses inside the Port.

Four years later, with a new focus on private business promotion in the 16 ports Federal Seaport System, the port of Coatzacoalcos reaches the highest level in cargo handling in all its history, with over 3 million tonnes handled in the Port Authority Terminal alone, altogether with more than 32 million tonnes of oil, oil by-products and petrochemicals handled at the “Pajaritos” PEMEX Terminal

Special thanks to API COATZACOALCOS