Background

Members will recall that ICS issued a letter to the Santos Port Authority on 17 February 2026, in response to the reinstatement of the requirement for an additional ballast water certificate upon entry to the port.

Members will also recall that the Port of Santos re-certification requirement is currently the subject of judicial review in Brazil, primarily concerning questions of domestic jurisdiction and competence. However, this process may take several years to conclude and does not address the broader concern of preserving the coherence and integrity of the international framework established under the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments 2004 (BWMC). Nor does it address the risk that other ports in Brazil may adopt similar measures.

Latest developments

The Secretariat has been closely monitoring this matter with the support of ABAC and have identified that the above concern is beginning to materialise. More recently, CODEBA, the company managing the ports in the State of Bahia, i.e. the ports of Salvador, Aratu-Candeias, Ilhéus and Itajaí in the State of Santa Catarina in Brazil, has proposed a requirement, described in Accreditation Notice No. 001/2026, that all ships calling at these ports obtain and submit a new additional certificate of compliance from a company accredited by CODEBA (AquaCert Soluções e Tecnologia Ltda), to verify adherence to and attest compliance with international ballast water management standards. This requirement would be in addition to the certificate, records, and other documentation already required under BWMC, and the provision of this certificate would be a pre-requisite for access to these four ports. As such this measure appears to replicate the one introduced by the Port of Santos, although the implementation date for the ports managed by CODEBA is not yet known.

The Secretariat was recently informed that the Brazilian Agency of Waterways (ANTAQ) has suspended CODEBA’s proposed measure. ANTAQ’s Board of Directors held a vote on 5 August 2026 to decide whether to ratify or overturn the injunction, and they decided to ratify it, therefore the proposed measure remains suspended.

In light of the requirement now proposed by CODEBA, and the emerging trend of such requirements being implemented across Brazilian ports, ICS, WSC and INTERCARGO sent a joint letter on 4 August 2026, to the Brazilian Maritime Authority, the Ministry of Ports and Airports, and the Presidency Office Chief of Staff, expressing the global shipping industry’s concerns regarding the expansion of these additional re-certification requirements. This letter was also copied to ANTAQ considering the scheduled vote of its Board of Directors.

Due to the short timeframe for issuing this letter before the ANTAQ Board vote, the Secretariat was unable to share the draft letter with members before submission. Members can find the letter attached at Annex A, which reflects the concerns and recommendations contained in previous letters issued to the Santos Port Authority.