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Tankers transhipping oil at the Port do Acu in Sao Joao Da Barra
2025 at 6:00 AM EDTBookmarkSaveDonald Trump’s trade war may have crushed global commodity prices
but it’s good news for one of Brazil’s largest ports
which is seeing an uptick in export volumes
was already investing in extra capacity to help resolve trading bottlenecks in agriculture and minerals
Tariff-induced distortions in global trade are now providing an additional boost
Júlia María de Assis thought someday she would take over the hotel her father had begun building in Atafona
a seaside district in Brazil’s northern Rio de Janeiro state
But the very attraction that drew the tourists to Atafona – the sea – became its foe
Advancing water put the hotel’s construction on hold until
“It was going to be 48 suites – a big hotel that never started operations,” said de Assis
standing beside rubble that once composed her family’s dream
“Even though the hotel’s structure was strong
every time the waves hit the building they damaged it and
over the past half century the Atlantic Ocean has been relentlessly consuming Atafona
part of the Sao Joao da Barra municipality that is 250 kilometers (155 miles) from Rio de Janeiro’s capital and home to 36,000 people
which originates in neighboring Sao Paulo state
brings sediment and sand to Atafona where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean
Its flow was mostly diverted in the 1950s to provide water to the growing capital
which weakened Atafona’s natural barrier to the ocean
materials technology professor at the Fluminense Federal Institute
“Less land sediment and sand that stabilized the coast made it so the sea is eating away at the city,” said de Araújo
who is pursuing a doctorate analyzing river erosion and seeking to model what that will mean for its delta going forward
He estimates that the river has one-third of its original flow
Deforestation of mangroves in recent decades also left Atafona more vulnerable
The sea’s average position moves some five meters (16 feet) inland every year
My biggest fear is that one day it will take my hut,” fisherwoman Vanesa Gomes Barreto
said at the stall where she sells her catch
Specialists have evaluated possible solutions
such as construction of artificial barriers or depositing vast quantities of sand
but none appear effective enough to halt the ocean’s advance
Global sea level rise due to melting ice means destruction will continue
if her city’s reversal of fortunes saddens her
She says she is grateful she was born in Atafona
“I feel nostalgic for the house where I spent summers,” she said
“It’s at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.”
Silva de Sousa reported from Rio de Janeiro
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Vultures roam the sand in the Brazilian resort town of Atafona amid the ruins of the latest houses destroyed by the sea
whose relentless rise has turned the local coastline into an apocalyptic landscape
The Atlantic Ocean advances an average of 6m a year in this small town north of Rio de Janeiro
which has long been prone to extreme erosion — now exacerbated by climate change
The sea has already submerged more than 500 houses
turning the once idyllic coastline into an underwater graveyard of wrecked structures
One of the next to lose his home would be Joao Waked Peixoto
Walking through the jumbled rubble of what was once his neighbors’ house
he looks at what is left: a fragment of a blue-painted room strewn with tattered magazines
“The sea advanced 3 or 4 meters in 15 days
Our wall might not last until next week,” he said
Waked Peixoto’s grandfather built the house as a vacation home
a beachfront getaway with large rooms and a garden
Waked Peixoto and his family moved in full-time
it now looks inevitable the house would be swallowed by the sea
because it holds so many memories of my whole family,” he said
It is part of the 4 percent of coastlines worldwide that lose 5m or more every year
The problem is being exacerbated by global warming
which is causing sea levels to rise and making currents and weather patterns more extreme
geologist Eduardo Bulhoes of Fluminense Federal University said
Atafona has had a “chronic problem” for decades
agriculture and other activities that drain it upstream
that has drastically reduced the river’s volume
meaning it transports less sand to Atafona,” Bulhoes said
the town’s beaches have stopped regenerating naturally
Construction on the coast has only made the problem worse
by stripping away sand dunes and vegetation
The result has been disastrous for the tourism and fishing industries
“Large boats can’t come through the river delta anymore ..
and the money disappeared along with them,” said Elialdo Bastos Meirelles
head of a local fishermen’s community of about 600 people
Local authorities have studied several plans to curb the erosion
including building dikes to reduce the force of the ocean’s waves and hauling sand from the river delta to the beach
which is modeled on similar initiatives in the Netherlands
Brazilian Undersecretary for the Environment Alex Ramos said no one had yet come up with a definitive solution
and that any plan would have to gain environmental regulators’ approval first
the county has launched a social assistance program that pays 1,200 reais (US$228) a month to more than 40 families who lost their homes to erosion
critics accuse the local government of a lack of political will
“We keep hearing promises,” said Veronica Vieira
head of neighborhood association SOS Atafona
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Forts and watchtowers typically stand guard on some pretty choice locations
That doesn’t change when they’re converted into hotels
Decommissioned forts and watchtowers make for a surprisingly delightful hotel experience
they tend to be located in elevated locations that offer panoramic views
A timeless strategy whether you’re fighting off an advancing army or a creeping hangover
it probably took a little extra work making these structures feel welcoming
Here's where to spend the night in an old fort
Torre di MoravolaPerugia
ItalyItaly isn’t exactly hurting for impressive small hotels
but Torre di Moravola stands out all the same
they had us at “thousand-year-old Umbrian hilltop watchtower converted into a seven-room boutique hotel,” and that was before we ever saw inside
For while the exterior may be a thousand years old
Faro Capo SpartiventoDomus de Maria
ItalyLighthouses don’t get much more grand than the 160-year-old Faro Capo Spartivento
freeing this unique building (and the neighboring keeper’s cottage) to transform itself into a small and secluded luxury hotel
and the interior-design style is inspiring and unique
Castello di ReschioPerugia
ItalySet on a vast estate in the picturesque hills of Umbria
Castello di Reschio dates back all the way to the tenth century
which includes the decade-plus its owners spent on a careful restoration
Given the results you’d have to agree it was worth the wait — especially the extravagant suite that spans five floors of the castle’s ancient watchtower
with a spectacular view of the Umbrian landscape
Hotel Torre di Cala PiccolaGrosseto
ItalyBuilt on what’s left of a centuries-old watchtower
on cliffs a hundred meters above the coast
Torre di Cala Piccola is one of the Mediterranean’s most glamorous luxury retreats
since Liz Taylor and Richard Burton visited in the 1960s — proof that some kinds of hospitality never really go out of style
Alila Fort BishangarhJaipur
IndiaYou’d have to be a pretty jaded traveler to not be impressed by Alila Fort Bishangarh Jaipur
an 18th-century hilltop fortification that’s been transformed
into a dramatic and surprisingly contemporary luxury boutique hotel
The rooms and suites are pleasingly modern
though they never lose touch with their Indian heritage
Brij Rama PalaceVaranasi
rather than attempt to wrestle with Varanasi’s snarled roads
and you’ll find yourself in an eclectic environment — the interiors span any number of eras and styles
and the elevator is a replacement for what is alleged to have been the first one installed in South Asia
Villa AugustusDordrecht
NetherlandsThey don’t make water towers like they used to — this one
and once contained housing for technicians
it’s back in business as a thoroughly unusual hotel
with some rooms occupying the old tower quarters
or even floating on the surface of the Wantij river
Tainaron Blue RetreatVathia
GreecePerfectly positioned at the southernmost point of the Greek mainland
Tainaron boasts spectacular sea views to match any Aegean island
Housed in a centuries-old tower that was designed to keep intruders out
the fully restored guesthouse now welcomes visitors from around the globe
but not too many of them — there are just three suites
two in the tower and a third in the adjoining tower house
Forte De Sao Joao Da BarraTavira
Forte São João da Barra was originally constructed in the 17th century to protect the port town of Tavira
Though you might forget it while having breakfast on the terrace
it’s important to note that the stone citadel is a landmark
and not a hotel purpose-built with travelers’ predilections in mind — which only adds to its appeal
Torre del CanónigoIbiza
SpainAn ancient watchtower in Ibiza’s historic hilltop old town is home to Torre del Canónigo
The Dalt Vila district is one of the quietest parts of town
though still close to pretty much everything
combined with the fact that towers are literally built to provide astonishing views
makes the Canónigo experience a spectacularly panoramic one
Parador de BaionaBaiona
with a commanding view over a port and a protected bay
a medieval fortress that’s been refashioned as a luxurious and atmospheric 122-room hotel
Two restaurants serve upscale traditional Galician fare with a heavy emphasis on locally sourced seafood; not many hotels can offer a walk along two kilometers of fortress walls
Parador de AlarcónAlarcon
SpainThe castle that’s now known as the Parador de Alarcón traces its history all the way back to the eighth century
which makes it one of the oldest Tablet hotels by any measure
Its 2003 restoration brought it up to modern hospitality standards while retaining an incredible wealth of history
during which the castle itself was established
Torre VellaMinorca
SpainSister to the nearby finca-style Santa Ponsa
Torre Vella is a farmhouse hotel with a twist; this one is built around an old fortified watchtower
set amid acre after acre of olive groves and medicinal herbs
It’s a slightly more bohemian vision than the more refined Santa Ponsa
Hotel L’AubergePunta Del Este
UruguayPunta del Este caters to the cream of Brazilian and Argentinian high society
most of whom come to stay in ostentatious seaside palaces or big-money casino hotels
are quite understandably few and far between
and when it comes to country house hotels crafted from converted Tudor-style water towers
there’s really only one: the Hotel L’Auberge
Photo by George MessaritakisAll other photos by the hotels unless otherwise stated
From listening bars to neighbourhood restaurants
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Decommissioned forts and watchtowers make for a surprisingly delightful hotel experience
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147.45.197.102 : 72eb975a-bb23-445e-a197-0af34303
Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista gestures to the audience during a ceremony in celebration of the start of oil production of OGX at the Superport Industrial Complex of Acu in Sao Joao da Barra in Rio de Janeiro in this April 26
(Bloomberg) — The last of the 66 meter-long (217 feet) concrete blocks sit ready to be towed out to sea as work on Latin America’s most expensive private port draws to a close
a flamboyant opening ceremony couldn’t be further from reality
The 6.3 billion reais ($2.4 billion) Acu port project in Rio de Janeiro state is the brainchild of Brazil’s most famous entrepreneur
While the port is finally becoming active after delays and cost overruns
Batista is busy defending himself against insider-trading charges after his commodities empire collapsed
when a ship loaded with 80,000 metric tons of iron ore departed to China from a terminal shared by Prumo Logistica SA
Another ship was moored last month to a quay of National Oilwell Varco Inc.
as Paris-based Technip SA also ramps up a flexible pipes plant
“This is a new stage,” Prumo Chief Executive Officer Eduardo Parente
“We are finishing the basic infrastructure works
completing the financial structure arrangements
The commercial negotiations are much easier and we have the first operations taking place.”
which means grand in the Tupi-Guarani indigenous language
comprises two terminals along the coast near Sao Joao da Barra
about 320 kilometers (200 miles) northeast of Rio’s famous beaches
which occupies about 90 square kilometers (35 square miles)
markets its close proximity to the Campos Basin oilfields
source of about 80 percent of Brazil’s output
this year opened in Acu its second manufacturing plant in Brazil to produce flexible pipes capable of resisting the layer of salt that blankets Brazil’s giant crude discoveries
“The Acu plant is performing in line with our expectations with good quality production and is progressing on ramp-up,” the company said in an e-mailed statement
“We remain very excited about the prospects.”
After losing about $30 billion of personal wealth
Batista’s involvement with Acu has been reduced to a minority stakeholder
Overburdened with debt and lack of capital to finish his projects
last year he surrendered control to EIG Global Energy Partners LLC
the $15 billion private-equity fund based in Washington
The scale and ambitions of the venture also changed
he envisaged a super-port as the centerpiece that would integrate his oil
Batista’s vision for Acu included an industrial complex with everything from car plants to steel mills as well as an annexed urban center called the “X” city
He used the letter X in his company names because he said it symbolizes the multiplication of wealth
The port would be the biggest in the Americas and among the world’s top three
Batista would relentlessly say in his pitches
with the iron-ore terminal initially projected to start operations in 2010
Journalists were shown the project by helicopter to better appreciate its magnitude
“It will become the tropical Rotterdam,” he said in a message on his Twitter account in March 2013
comparing the venture with Europe’s busiest port
which is having his stake in Prumo reduced to less than 10 percent after failing to participate in a capital increase
last month attended the first hearing of a landmark trial in Brazil for alleged insider-trading and market manipulation
Batista didn’t reply an e-mail seeking comments on Acu
Prumo took a more conservative approach to focus on the delivery of the port and attract customers as shares trade close to its lowest level since 2008
Batista’s grandiose “X” city and the steel
cement and industrial center he once envisioned were scrapped
The company expects to finish installation of the 47 concrete blocks required for terminal 1 by April and the 42 blocks for terminal 2 by July
Units of Edison Chouest Offshore International and Wartsila Oyj are scheduled to start in the first half of 2015
Prumo also expects a joint venture with BP Plc to set up maritime fuel storage and distribution to start operating in the second half of next year
The port plans to operate terminal space to handle bulk
while it waits to sign contracts with oil companies for crude handling by 2016 after belated negotiations
adding that he expects the venture to start generating operating profit next year
Prumo rose 2.8 percent to 37 centavos at 11:27 a.m
reducing its decline this year to 66 percent
“This project will gain strength now that it enters the operational stage and companies set their bases,” said Wagner Victer
who originally developed the port concept in 2000 before presenting it to Batista as Rio’s secretary of energy
“It became a reality even with all the obvious difficulties and delays in projects of this scope.”
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DC-based private equity group is focusing its acquisitions on renewable energy and midstream oil
which includes storage and transportation of oil products
EIG is also considering selling its 76% stake in Prumo Logistica SA
a holding company for infrastructure projects including Porto do Acu Operacoes SA
a Manhattan-sized port in Rio de Janeiro state that is one of Brazil’s main oil and natural gas hubs
2017 at 4:30 PM ESTUpdated on November 29
2017 at 5:55 AM ESTBookmarkSaveLock This article is for subscribers only.Iron ore will weaken next year as global supplies increase including from a new mine in Brazil at the same time that steel production risks topping out in China
which expects prices to decline back toward $50 a metric ton
The raw material may fall to $60 a ton in three months
according to the New York-based bank’s projections
which suggest a second year of lower prices after they dropped in 2017
Benchmark ore with 62 percent content was at $67.92 a dry ton Wednesday
To anyone who doesn’t keep up with Jiu-Jitsu
it could seem like José Aldo became famous overnight
with his big win over Chad Mendes at UFC 142 last night
the Nova União black belt has been toiling hard for years to make it to the top and the tip of everyone’s tongue—and he’s worn out many a gi too
Which happens to be what he’s still doing
the UFC featherweight champion’s team dug deep into their collective memory to point out the five most memorable matches of José Aldo’s Jiu-Jitsu career
The fighter from the Brazilian state of Amazonas first appeared on the pages of GRACIEMAG back in 2004
for a performance he put in at a No-Gi tournament in the town of São João da Barra
Aldo brought the crowd to a frenzy with a barnburner of a match against Rodrigo Damm
Despite having been around the competition block
Aldo’s teachers don’t have too many of his matches fresh in their memory
“It’s getting harder and harder to remember,” replied Dedé Pederneiras fighting off sleep one day before UFC 142
“That’s because back then he was just another guy on the team
Now he’s our UFC champion,” smiled the coach
The one who ends up solving the issue is Professor Vitor “Shaolin”
“He competed against Cobrinha, Bruno Frazatto and Wilson Reis. And he had an awesome match against Celso Venícius in a lightweight absolute tournament in Buzios. It was a great match,” recalls the teacher at NYC BJJ academy
Aldo against Rodrigo Damm in submission wrestling in São João da Barra
José Aldo crossed paths with four-time featherweight world champion-winning black belt Rubens Charles Cobrinha (Alliance)
They had two matches and both were won by Aldo
GRACIEMAG.com has been hunting down videos of the encounters as though lost treasure
the beachgoers who strolled past the mats at Arena Búzios got the chance to see one of José Aldo’s greatest matches
Celso (Gordo Jiu-Jitsu) is the one who recalls it: “We were brown belts
and we came up against each other in the first match of the under-75 kg absolute
We scowled at each other and the mood was one of altercation immediately but it wasn’t personal—fight stuff
In the end I sunk a Kimura lock; I don’t remember if I finished with it but it was along those lines
He was already a really tough fighter; if he hadn’t concentrated on MMA he’d have certainly made more of a name for himself in Jiu-Jitsu.”
at the Tijuca Tennis Club in Rio de Janeiro
two MMA aces crossed paths as purple belts before reaching stardom
“We made it to the light featherweight quarterfinals and it was a tough
I already knew Aldo from prior championships but a lot of folks didn’t know him yet,” recalls Wilson (BJJ United)
“Even so he surprised me with his accelerated game
but I managed to land a double-leg takedown and win by 4 to 2
one of the Jiu-Jitsu wins I’m proudest of
since I always saw him as being one of the top guys.”
An ace from Atos Jiu-Jitsu team and a student of Roberto Tozi
Bruno Frazatto was another to Aldo’s worth in the gi
I’m still carrying bile for him (laughs)
4-4 on the scoreboard and he won on advantage points
We swapped a bunch of sweeps and ended up in a tangle that seemed like the 50/50 guard
He was already the stalwart fighter he is today
You can tell him I want a rematch—but only in the gi (laughs)!”
To get a sense of what José Aldo’s style in the gi
check out this match against Leandro Martins
who at the time represented TT Jiu-Jitsu and is now on team CheckMat
Pragmatic88Slot Gacor
the helicopter rose from the tarmac and swept into a cobalt sky
It powered north-east over deserted beaches, dense Atlantic rainforest and fishing boats that bobbed lazily in the ocean below. Then finally, 80 minutes on, the destination came into view: a gigantic concrete pier that juts nearly two miles out into the South Atlantic and boasts an unusual nickname: the Highway to China
Dotted with orange-clad construction workers and propped up by dozens of 38-tonne pillars
this vast concrete structure is part of the Superporto do Acu
a £1.6bn port and industrial complex that is being erected on the Rio coastline
on an area equivalent to 12,000 football pitches
Reputedly the largest industrial port complex of its type in the world, Açu is also one of the most visible symbols of China's rapidly accelerating drive into Brazil and South America as it looks to guarantee access to much-needed natural resources and bolster its support base in the developing world
its 10-berth pier will play host to a globetrotting armada of cargo ships
among them the 380-metre long Chinamax – the largest vessel of its type
capable of ferrying 400,000 tonnes of cargo
soy and millions of barrels of oil are expected to pass along the "Highway" each year on their way east
where they will alleviate China's seemingly unquenchable thirst for natural resources
"This project marks a new phase in relations between Brazil and China," Rio's economic development secretary
said during the recent visit of about 100 Chinese businessmen to the port complex
which is being built by the Brazilian logistics company LLX and should receive billions of dollars of Chinese investment
This new phase of engagement with Brazil and South America
is part of China's "going out strategy" – an economic and
energy and food by pouring the country's colossal foreign reserves into overseas companies and projects
China is expected to overtake Japan as the world's second largest economy this year and may already be the world's greatest energy consumer
Now it is set to become Brazil's top foreign investor
with its companies plowing $20bn into the country in the first six months of 2010
A recent study by Deloitte predicted that Chinese investments in Brazil could hit an average of about $40bn a year between now and 2014
with companies throwing money at sectors ranging from telecommunications
"Relations with Brazil in all areas have entered a new era," Qiu Xiaoqi
recently told the state news agency Xinhua
The surge in China's South American spending is not just a Brazilian phenomenon
Ecuador has already signed around $5bn of bilateral deals with China this year
including $1.7bn to help build a hydro-electric dam and $1bn investments for oil exploration and infrastructure projects
That compared with Chinese investment of just $56m in 2009
Chinese companies have sunk $1.4bn into mining operations in Peru this year
while in April Hugo Chávez announced that the Chinese
already major sponsors of Venezuelan oil exploration
had agreed to open a $20bn credit-line for the "Bolivarian revolution"
a book about the growing tussle for global resources
described today's China as "the shopaholic of planet Earth"
"The Chinese authorities understand that to sustain the country's continued growth
they will have to ensure that its industries are provided with adequate supplies of energy
and other basic raw materials," he said
But the "going out" strategy went far beyond business transactions
"They seek to fashion a multipolar world in which no single power – read the United States – plays an overwhelmingly dominant role
they seek to bolster ties with rising regional powers like Brazil and South Africa."
the city nearest to Acu and one of Rio state's poorest regions
the Chinese presence is being felt even before Brazil's Highway to China is complete
LLX staff at the Açu port lay on hot water and Mandarin interpreters for visiting Chinese dignitaries
has started offering free Mandarin lessons to locals interested in working with the wave of Chinese guests that is anticipated
"You should see a 10-year-old boy saying
'I understand … the Chinese are coming and when the Chinese industries come I want to work for them and if I speak Mandarin I'll have a competitive advantage on the others'," beamed Eike Batista
the billionaire entrepreneur behind the superport and one of the most vocal cheerleaders for Chinese advances into Brazil
said during a recent tour of the port: "This is part of a Chinese strategy of going to the market more and more
They are already a very considerable presence in Africa and we are now going through this moment in Brazil."
The Highway to China lay "in the middle" of this blossoming relationship with China
adding: "We are betting that … this will continue growing."
"There are many in Washington who worry about China's growing presence in Africa and Latin America and claim that this poses a threat to America's long-term strategic interests," said Klare
that the US' "fixation" with Afghanistan and the war on terror meant there had been virtually no reaction
In Brazil meanwhile China's arrival has prompted cries of neo-colonialism
"The Chinese have bought Africa and now they are trying to buy Brazil," the prominent economist Antônio Delfim Netto complained in a recent interview with the Estado de Sao Paulo newspaper
warning that it was a "grave mistake" to allow a foreign state to buy "land
minerals [and] natural resources" from another sovereign power
saying: "The association between Brazil and China is a two-way highway." Chinese companies such as Wuhan Iron and Steel had committed to helping build a $5bn steel mill at the port complex
rather than always shipping out primary resources to process at home
"You want to get three tonnes of raw iron ore
[so] produce one tonne of steel in Brazil," he said
"That philosophy is sinking in and is great for both sides."
Neither would Chinese companies be allowed to flood the complex with hordes of foreign workers as had happened in Africa
"If it was up to them they would bring lots of Chinese workers as they are used to doing," he admitted
"[But] Brazil's legislation is very strict in this sense."
Batista suggested that rather than complaining about China's courtship of Brazil
western powers should urge their own companies to pay more attention to the region themselves
"In the last 15 years or so the [American and European] CEOs have stopped coming here and that is why they are a little bit behind," he said
"We are pushing European companies and saying: 'You're not really understanding what is happening in Brazil'."
"Don't put Brazil in the same bag as our neighbours," he added
This article was amended on 17 September 2010
The original refferred to the 380-metre wide ChinaMax