The Port of Lázaro Cárdenas is at a crucial stage. While the customs authority has tightened cargo inspections—which lengthens clearance times and increases pressure on importers and exporters—the port community and the Lázaro Cárdenas National Port System Administration (Asipona) are promoting investments that seek to transform the port into a strategic hub for Mexico’s supply chains.
“Today, the entire process for importing goods through the port takes an average of eight hours,” Alfredo Huesca, spokesperson for the Lázaro Cárdenas Port Community , acknowledged at a press conference . The figure is revealing: while it represents an improvement compared to the delays of up to 12 hours seen in recent years, it reflects that the port’s efficiency is dependent on centralized federal processes rather than its operational capacity.
The eight hours that Huesca mentions are not so far from those reported for this port by the Average Port Transport Time Index (ITPAP) , prepared by T21 Business Intelligence , although for July of this year it stood at just over 10 hours , which suggests that bottlenecks may have returned.
The port community spokesperson stated that each of the more than three thousand vehicle units entering the port is equipped with a GPS tracking device to measure the time taken for the process.
A consolidated port community
The Lázaro Cárdenas Port Community was established more than a decade ago (November 27, 2013) with the goal of coordinating public and private stakeholders within the area . “We meet periodically to seek joint solutions,” Huesca stated. This community includes concessionaires, customs agencies, transporters, railroads, importers and exporters, the Harbor Master’s Office, the port and customs authorities, among others.
The initiative was consolidated at the time as the first registered trademark of a port community in Mexico. Since then, the coordination has made it possible to address common challenges, from process efficiency to promoting the port at trade shows and business meetings.
Structural advantages and room for growth
Unlike other Mexican ports surrounded by cities, Lázaro Cárdenas is recognized as a young, planned port with competitive advantages such as deep navigation channels (19 meters) , a remote location from the urban area, a logistics center for trucking (ASLA) that avoids internal congestion, and 97 kilometers of railroad tracks within the port.
Expansion capacity is another of its distinguishing features. “It’s the only port with more than 1,100 hectares available for new businesses, double what other facilities in the Pacific offer,” Huesca noted.
Diversification of loads
Lázaro Cárdenas is not just a container port. Its 23 berths, 15 concessionaires, and 13 terminals handle the movement of automobiles, bulk cargo, minerals, petroleum fluids, agricultural cargo, steel, and coal. Multinational companies such as Hutchison Ports , APM Terminals , SSA Marine México , ArcelorMittal , Pemex , and CFE are among the main operators.
For the first seven months of this year, the port has accumulated the handling of 16 million 456 thousand 551 tons of cargo , a drop of 7.6% compared to the figure for the same period in 2024 caused by the decline in the handling of mineral bulk, according to information from the General Coordination of Ports and Merchant Marine (CGPMM) , an office belonging to the Ministry of the Navy (Semar) .
When it comes to container handling, the story is different . Between January and July 2025, a total of 1,484,473 20-foot containers (TEUs) were handled, a measure of maritime standardization, representing a 10% annual growth rate.
Not to mention the movement of new cars, an area in which the port of Lázaro Cárdenas is a national leader. There were 407,897 units (imported and exported) from January to July of this year, 7.5% more than the same period last year.
Intermodal connectivity
Land connectivity is key. The port is connected by road to the country’s consumer centers, with 75% of the merchandise brought in by this mode. However, its greatest challenge has been to recover the rail traffic it once had (today, it accounts for barely 25% of all merchandise brought into the country) through Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) .
But in its struggle, the train is gaining ground . This mode of transportation, in the domestic market, serves destinations such as Pantaco (with 31% of the total), TILH (20%), Salinas Victoria (18%), Cuautitlán (18%), Querétaro, and Puerta México (6%).
“The railway’s effectiveness is 99.98%, with three years without blockades or vandalism. This has been crucial in restoring confidence,” Huesca emphasized.
Customs and security: efficiency with greater control
One of the most sensitive areas is customs. Although between 2022 and 2024, this authority has doubled its inspection gates (from three to six) and incorporated X-ray equipment, which provides increasingly clear evidence during inspections, it has also incorporated ZBB infrastructure for inspections along the side of the ship. This is in addition to parallel supervision by the Navy through the Unified Center for Maritime Protection (CUMAR), with inspections that pursue national security alerts.
The effect is contradictory: increased security and revenue, but also increased pressure on time and costs. “Yes, the authorities have significantly increased inspections, but these additional costs are not passed on to the importer or exporter,” Huesca clarified.
Investments: La Palma Island and new customs facilities
The future focus is on infrastructure. The port authority acquired a 608-hectare plot of land on La Palma Island , adjacent to the port complex. 162 hectares of land have already been leased to companies such as Maersk , Amports , and SSA, according to María Agustina Álvarez, commercial manager of Asipona Lázaro Cárdenas.
This acquisition of La Palma Island is part of a broader investment project that, in total, is projected to invest 6.391 billion pesos (mdp) in public investment by 2030. These resources, owned by Asipona Lázaro Cárdenas, will be allocated to the development of La Palma Island (4.041 billion mdp); construction of the southern exit customs office to separate cargo and empty flows (348 million mdp), a peripheral ring road (325 million mdp), alternate roads to avoid port-city conflicts (1.612 billion mdp), modernization of the airfield (140 million mdp), and the expansion of fiscalized yards (144 million mdp).
At the private level, Hutchison Ports and APM Terminals, the two largest operators of specialized container terminals, are currently expanding their yards and docks by more than 40% of their capacity; while SSA and TPP are strengthening their auto and mineral operations.
The road network will be expanded with the expansion of the Siglo XXI Highway, which will offer four lanes from the port to the center of the country by 2027.
An image to be recomposed
Beyond infrastructure and statistics, Lázaro Cárdenas faces an intangible challenge: the perception of insecurity . Rail blockades and violence on highways connecting it to the center of the country have negatively impacted its reputation in the recent past.
“It’s hard work to reverse the effects of these blockages. Confidence is slowly returning, but the process is slow,” admitted María Agustina Álvarez.
A port in transition
In eight years, Lázaro Cárdenas has doubled its operations, and plans to increase its capacity by 40 percent in the next 18 months . Its cohesive port community, supported by robust investment projects, seeks to transform it into a true maritime hub .
However, the port walks a fine line: maintaining efficiency despite increasingly stringent customs inspections while simultaneously convincing users that security and operational issues are a thing of the past.
Today, the port efficiently serves more than eight thousand importers. “We invite you to try it out and see how it works,” Huesca concluded .
Comment and follow us on X: @EnriqueDuRio / @GrupoT21
