Due to this, almost all of the internal cargo transport is made through roads, while more than 75 percent of its foreign trade is made through the Paraguay-Paraná river system.
This system, or hidrovía, was born in Puerto Cáceres, in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso and ends in Nueva Palmira, Uruguay.
From there, it joins the fluvial axis of the Río de la Plata, allowing the exit to the Atlantic Ocean of all kinds of products.
During the 21st century, Paraguay has enjoyed a stable growth of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a greater purchasing power of its population.
This has also favored the development of production and trade in Paraguay, and above all, the international logistics services that support these sectors.
Along the Paraguay-Paraná waterway there are several recently built ports and others that have been modernized.
Among the most important ports are Asunción and Pilar, which have excellent storage and logistics services for handling containers.
The rest of the ports have different capacities, mainly oriented to the handling of grains and cereals.
The fact that Paraguay is the holder of the largest fluvial transport fleet among the countries that use the Paraguay-Paraná waterway, with more than 3,000 boats, tugboats and barges of all types, stands out.
The private sector is actively investing in the manufacture and expansion of this fleet, to increase the capacity of mobilization through this waterway.
According to figures published by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in 2017, 5.6 million tons of products were exported to international markets from Paraguayan ports.
That same year, the number of products imported through the ports of the Paraguay-Paraná waterway exceeded 3.3 million tons.
The IDB also noted that the container mobilization capacity of the Paraguayan private and public sector in the same year exceeded 136 thousand tons.
By sharing borders with Chile, Paraguayan companies also have the possibility of moving products to and from the countries of the Pacific Basin.
In this case, land transport is used to Chile, where it is connected by sea or air with Asia and Oceania.
What should you keep in mind when looking for an international logistics services company in Paraguay?
Any company that provides international logistics services in Paraguay must have the capacity to coordinate several different activities when handling import or export charges.
This implies both logistic work, loading and distribution, as well as storage, cargo tracking and customs documentation, among other tasks.
We are going to mention those tasks that any international logistics services company in Paraguay that you are interested in hiring should be able to do:
1) International transport in terrestrial, maritime and air mode. This may include one or more of these services:
a) Maritime transport of full containers (FCL) or consolidated partial loads (LCL)
b) Land transport of containers, industrial cargo and general merchandise
c) Multimodal transport services
d) Management of merchandise classified as dangerous (IMO)
2) National and international logistics. This includes everything related to the preparation and tracking of freight and services related to:
a) National and international land transport
b) Withdrawal of cargo at the factory or consolidation site
c) Follow-up on shipments in transit
d) Liaison and coordination with customs
e) Delivery of documentation at home
3) Tax deposit services. This logistics service includes topics such as:
a) Consolidation and deconsolidation of containers
b) Storage of general and risk or dangerous cargoes
c) Mobilization of containers to and from the port
d) 24-hour customs service
4) Merchandise insurance. Any international logistics service in Paraguay should include the purchase of insurance that includes:
a) Coverage against all risks in any type of products or cargo
b) Policies required by each country or carrier company for air, sea or land cargo.
Documentation to be handled by international logistics services in Paraguay
The international logistics services in Paraguay must guarantee the customer compliance with numerous standards required by Paraguayan official bodies.
The requirements of the countries that share the Paraguay-Paraná waterway and the overseas ports or air terminals to use Argentina, Brazil or Chile must also be met, as the case may be.
Among the documents that handle these international logistics services and that must accompany the hiring of each freight we have:
Guarantee letter
All importers must present a letter of guarantee for the loads that come in the container.
It is mandatory presentation to be able to remove the load. Not having it leads to problems at customs and delays that are detrimental to the operator’s logistics.
Security Charter
This document must accompany all freight made by air and endorses that the cargo meets the safety standards required for transport on aircraft.
Failure to submit this letter means that the merchandise can not leave on the contracted flight.
Form IMO Declaration
When you want to transport a dangerous cargo or that involves a risk to people or equipment, you must declare the characteristics of the same on the IMO Declaration form.
In this way, you can take the precautionary measures that correspond when handling the load.
Declaration of maritime embarkation
This document is prepared by the person who hires the cargo and delivered it to the logistics operator so that it can prepare the Bill of Lading required by the port authorities and shipping companies.
It is an informative statement with all the data of the cargo, including the name of who contracts the shipment, its addressee, type of goods or products it contains, weight and other data.
Declaration of air boarding
It is similar to the document prepared for shipping. The freight contractor must describe in this the complete data of the cargo that will be sent by air.
This includes the data of the sender, the consignee, type of products that make up the load, weight and other data.
Make sure you have the best international logistics in Paraguay
In Alfa Trading S.A. We have more than 28 years of experience in the area of international logistics services in Paraguay.
We can help you prepare your import or export activities, with the lowest cost and maximum operational efficiency.
The international logistics services provided by Alfa Trading include everything related to maritime, air and land transport.
We also take care of the tracking and verification of delivery of your products at your destination.
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