Yilport Planning $1.6 Billion Ports Expansion in El Salvador

Turkish holding company Yilport will invest an expected $1.62 billion to expand two ports in El Salvador and operate them jointly with the local port authority, the government of the Central American country said.

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, in a post on X on Sunday evening, said the investment is part of his broader economic revitalization plan.

Yilport, which also operates ports in Guatemala, Ecuador, Peru and in Europe, is set to invest to triple capacity at Acajutla, El Salvador's biggest port.

It will also invest to overhaul La Union, a port in the east of the country which has been closed since construction was finished in 2008.

Dredging work is needed before the port can open, to allow larger, heavier ships to enter, according to Bukele's post.

Yilport and El Salvador's Autonomous Port Executive Commission (CEPA) will jointly operate the two ports under a 50- year concession for each, according to Bukele.

Acajutla has moved more than 3.1 million metric tons of cargo so far this year, according to official data.

Earlier this year, Yilport announced a "pre-agreement" to hold concessions in the two ports for 100 years, though Salvadoran law only allows joint concessions for up to 40 years.

It was not immediately clear whether the law will be amended to allow Yilport to operate the ports for 50 years under the new agreement.

(Reuters - Reporting by Gerardo Arbaiza; Writing by Kylie Madry; Editing by Susan Fenton)