Texas Border Business
Texas Border Business
MATAMOROS, Mexico — T-MEC Terminal Puerto del Norte has begun receiving aluminum trifluoride produced by Orbia in Matamoros, starting a regular logistics operation intended to move the industrial cargo through the port for export to Brazil.
The cargo remains in storage while the terminal awaits the vessel that is expected to carry it to the Port of Pecém, Brazil. The terminal has not disclosed the shipment’s volume or the vessel’s scheduled arrival date.
T21, a Mexican transportation and logistics publication, reported the operation Sept. 22, citing information from T-MEC Terminal Puerto del Norte. The cargo comes from Orbia Fluor & Energy Materials, a division of Orbia.
The aluminum trifluoride travels approximately 84 kilometers by road from Orbia’s Matamoros plant to the terminal. Arriving trucks and cargo units undergo reception, weighing and operational checks before workers unload the product and place it in storage, according to T21.
The terminal began receiving the product while maintenance dredging was underway in the port’s access channel and operating basin. The dredging was scheduled from Sept. 18 through Sept. 25, using the Crestway, a self-propelled hopper dredger operated by Boskalis.
The vessel’s arrival and loading of the stored material would complete the cargo’s planned movement from the Matamoros manufacturing plant to Brazil. Until those steps occur, the operation remains an export shipment in progress rather than a completed international movement.
T-MEC Terminal Puerto del Norte was previously known as Terminal Marítima de Matamoros. It is operated by Mota-Engil México and is being developed with PRODI, Grupo de Promoción de Desarrollo e Infraestructura, according to the terminal’s official website.
The terminal says operations using its existing infrastructure began in September 2024 and that work has continued to prepare and improve the port. Its website describes the site as a multipurpose, public-use terminal “designed to meet the demand of the industrial zone in northeastern Mexico.”
The terminal is designed to handle general cargo, steel products, agricultural and mineral bulk commodities, vehicles, containers and project cargo. It also lists capabilities for energy and offshore operations.
According to the terminal, the property covers 60 hectares and includes nearly one kilometer of waterfront. Its navigation channel is 12 meters deep, and its infrastructure is designed to receive vessels measuring up to 240 meters in length.
The terminal is located near the United States border and the industrial centers of Tamaulipas, Nuevo León and Coahuila. Its operators have presented the facility as a maritime option for industries in northeastern Mexico seeking access to international markets.
The Orbia cargo is among the first announced industrial flows during the terminal’s move toward regular operations. The activity combines factory-to-port trucking, weighing, unloading, storage and eventual maritime loading.
Neither Orbia nor the terminal publicly announced the expected frequency of future shipments. They also did not disclose the trucking contractor, storage volume or maritime carrier involved in this operation.
Completion of the shipment now depends on the arrival of the designated vessel and the transfer of the stored aluminum trifluoride aboard for maritime transportation to Pecém.
