MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chile invests in ports to boost cruise ship tourism

Chile's Ministry of Public Works (MOP) recently launched a 15.5 million US dollars plan to build infrastructure in five of the country’s ports to allow cruise ships (some over 300 meters long) to dock in Easter Island and the Patagonia.

According to MOP director Daniel Ulloa, the Patagonia will be seeing many of its ports remodelled. In Castro, 7.3 million USD will be invested to build a new harbour to receive cruise ships up to 125 meters long.

Puerto Montt is making plans to extend the Tenglo Canal to allow bigger ships to cross. A port will be built, specifically for receiving cruise ships, in Puerto Navarino.

Puerto Williams and Guardian Brito ports will receive a 2 million and 6 million USD respectively for construction.

The Kirke Pass will be widened by more than 20 meters to allow cruise ships to better access Puerto Natales from Argentina.

The construction of a port in Easter Island is also on the agenda, which would require a 20 million USD investment.

MOP said that Chilean ports’ lack of infrastructure seriously impedes the nation’s tourism growth. For instance, Puerto Navarino and Puerto Williams do not have port facilities to receive tourists, while the nearby Ushuaia in Argentina receives yearly 200,000 tourists because it can accommodate cruise ships.

On average, those tourists stay for two days, pumping money into Argentina’s economy. ( Santiago Times)