MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Ex-President Lacalle Pou: 'I will not die without seeing Paraguay have a sea outlet in Uruguay'

Lacalle Pou revealed that private investors are already exploring possible sites for the project

Former Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou (2020-2025) reignited the debate on Tuesday over the construction of a port in Uruguayan territory aimed at providing Paraguay with maritime access, during an event in the Paraguayan city of Santa Rita, in the Alto Paraná department. “I will not die without truly seeing Paraguay have a sea outlet in Uruguay. I am convinced we must move forward on this,” the political leader said at the gathering held to mark the tenth anniversary of the alliance between local company Sul América Insumos Agrícolas and Uruguayan firm Proquimir.

Lacalle Pou revealed that private investors are already exploring possible sites for the project. “I know they have other locations for their logistics, but if you look at the map of the region, Uruguay should naturally be Paraguay's sea outlet, and that would give Paraguayans enormous peace of mind,” he added. Paraguayan President Santiago Peña endorsed the call at the same event: “Uruguay is certainly our outlet to the sea,” he said, without offering further operational details.

The project has concrete precedents. During Lacalle Pou's presidency, both governments signed in August 2023 an understanding to advance the construction of a port in Uruguay's Soriano department, with an estimated investment of $300 million in two phases. The plan was part of a broader initiative launched in 2022 by then-Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benítez (2018-2023) aimed at exploring a “sovereign presence” on the Atlantic coast to access world markets. However, the project's progress has not been officially announced, and the current Uruguayan government of Yamandú Orsi, in office since March 2025, has not issued public statements on the status of the proposal.

For Paraguay, ocean access is a long-standing strategic issue. As a landlocked nation, it currently transports 100% of its international cargo through the Paraguay-Paraná Waterway, a fluvial corridor of more than 3,400 kilometers connecting Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina, and Uruguay and reaching the Río de la Plata. This dependence has generated recurring frictions with Argentina over toll fees on the Argentine section of the waterway and over navigation conditions, including an open dispute two years ago over tariffs that reached the Intergovernmental Committee on the Waterway.

Paraguayan foreign trade reached $16.72 billion in exports to 148 destinations in 2025, 5.8% more than the previous year, according to the latest report from the Central Bank of Paraguay. The main export categories are soybeans, beef, and electricity generated by the binational Itaipú dam. The construction of a Paraguayan port on Uruguayan coastline would create a logistical alternative that would reduce dependence on the waterway and grant Asunción greater bargaining leverage with its neighbors.

Lacalle Pou, leader of Uruguay's National Party, maintains an active agenda in the private sector and in regional forums after completing his term in March 2025. His presence in Alto Paraná is part of a series of visits to entrepreneurs and Mercosur authorities focused on regional logistics integration, one of the priorities he championed during his presidency.