Fire-hit Paranagua Port Berth to Resume Ops Nov. 4

Shipping agent Cargonave said on Tuesday Berth 201 on the West Corridor of Brazil's port of Paranagua would tentatively resume operations on Saturday, according to a note to clients based on information it said it received from the local port authority.

The port authority did not have an immediate comment on Cargonove's new note to clients.

Previously, Cargonave had said operations would resume on Thursday, a decision that the port authority "revoked," according to an updated statement from the shipping agent.

Paranagua, located in the southern state of Parana, is the second largest port in Brazil and a main hub for exports of grains and sugar, as well as for imports of fertilizer.

Paranagua's Berth 201 was disrupted by a fire on a conveyor belt over the weekend.

Since the incident, Cargill has redirected three vessels to the port's East Corridor, Cargonave said in the note.

In a statement, Cargill said the fire at one third-party terminal used by the company at Paranagua did not seriously damage cargo stored there. Loading of an unspecified cargo that was underway at the time of the fire could be completed safely, Cargill said, declining to comment further.

In a statement late on Monday, the port authority said Berth 201 was operating "using direct loading and unloading mode," that is, moving products including fertilizers, cereals and general cargo "without the use of belts and shiploaders."

The automated boarding system should be normalized in the coming days, the authority said, without elaborating.

(Reuters - Reporting by Ana Mano and Roberto Samora; Editing by Mark Potter and Steven Grattan)