Due to the 1980's recession, the merchant marine of our nation came to some hardship times in several of its fundamental areas; therefore, quality and productivity of services were inferior to international standards. Equipment and premises also showed important deficiencies. A low volume of shipments was being transported through the sea in relation to the size of economy; there was also a great dispersion of investments in a higher number of ports, which reflected In a low index usage of the capacity there installed, at the same time that there were other close by ports almost saturated.

At the same time, the administration and building of ports was under exclusive charge of federal government and labor was monopolized by government enterprises where strong conflicts rose, associated to only one labor union per port. Prices and quotas were set centralized in an uniform way for all ports, and private investment was basically symbolic and once in existence, was limited to private terminals.

This is why decentralization was necessary in order to achieve a greater autonomy, and also to allow a steady development in each port, always trying to find a better effectiveness and less bureaucracy, promoting at once participation of private enterprises and improvement in services.

Within 1993 and 1994 a new juridical system was established by issuing the laws mentioned above and at the same time a new institutional organization model was defined and therefore port authority became strong.

The new organization model stands on a base that adapts itself to private enterprises by means of operators and suppliers at specialized terminals and facilities such as handling service, dredging, driving, platform scales and locomotive service, towing, boating, provisioning, mooring, fuel supply, etc.

Integral Port Administrators are found themselves in the middle of the pyramid, and are basically in charge in administration, maintenance and expansion (investment), strategic planning of the port, promoting private investment and fostering competition among ports.

On top of it, we find Federal Government, which carries out functions of authority, policies, port property and regulation.

That is how in 1994 the Integral Port Administrations started up, in order to decentralize ports' administration, endeavor its management autonomy and favor their own financing self sufficiency.