Good morning, everyone, and Welcome to Hidrovias do Brasil Earnings Conference Call to discuss the results for the Q3 of 2025. Joining us today are Mr. Décio Amaral, CEO, and Andrea Heschman, CFO, and Ms. Gabriela Colas, Investor Relations Manager. This event is being recorded and will be available on the company's Investor Relations website. After the company's management remarks, we will open the floor for a Q and A session. At that time, further instructions will be provided. Simultaneous interpretation is available, and to access it, simply click on the interpretation button at the bottom of your screen and select your preferred language. Before proceeding, we would like to remind you that any forward-looking statements made during this conference call are based on the beliefs and assumptions of Hidrovias do Brasil's management and on information currently available to the company.
They involve risks and uncertainties as they relate to future events and, therefore, depend on circumstances that may or may not occur. Investors and analysts should be aware that various factors related to the macroeconomic environment, the industry, and other operational aspects could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. Having said that, I turn over to Mr. Décio Amaral . Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today for Hidrovias do Brasil Q3 2025 earnings call. Let's get started on slide five with the main highlights of the quarter. The Q3 was marked by another period of strong results, driven mainly by the continued normalization of navigation conditions in the southern corridor and tariff adjustments in the north. On the Paraná-Paraguay Waterway.
W e operated through the first nine months of the year with water levels within the normal range. This environment, along with our ongoing dredging and rock removal work, allowed for smooth navigation and supported a solid recovery in results for this operation. I would like to highlight the growth in volumes, which reached the highest levels in our history. We had a longer period, but even though the quarter was positive, meanwhile, performance remained similar to what we saw in the first half of the year. Our focus there continues to be optimizing assets through commercial and productivity initiatives aimed at maximizing returns even under adverse conditions. Finally, our coastal shipping operation, whose sale was completed last week, delivered results in line with normal operations, i n the Q3 of 2024, recurring adjusted EBITDA for Hidrovias.
Including coastal shipment, reached $361 million, and for the first nine months of 2024, it totaled $965 million, with a recurring adjusted EBITDA margin of 49%, which is 10% points higher than in the same period last year. I now hand over to Andrea Heschman, our CFO, who will go over the results by operation. I'll be back later for the Q and A session. Thank you, Delcio, and good morning, everyone. Before we dive into the numbers, just a quick note: this release is presented on a pro forma basis, including the results of our coastal shipping operation. Let's begin with the northern corridor on slide seven. We handled 2.3 million tons in the quarter, which is higher than the same period last year, mainly reflecting the normalized navigation conditions. The quarter had some mixed dynamics on one side.
We faced temporary challenges in cargo reception at the ETC and the usual harvest seasonality. On the other hand, we saw higher grain intake via direct road transport and greater fertilizer backhaul volumes. Year to date, we've handled 6.3 million tons, generating an operating revenue of $331 million for the quarter and $884 million for the first nine months, a 15% increase versus the same period of 2024. Recurring adjusted EBITDA came in at $194 million for the quarter, 36% above last year when navigation conditions were more restricted. In the first nine months, recurring EBITDA reached $540 million, up 14% year over year, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 61%. Looking ahead for the Q4, this is a seasonally weakest period of the year, reflecting both the crop cycle and lower river levels.
In this context, we expect volumes similar to 2022, noting that in 2023, I'm sorry, in 2024, results were impacted by the severe droughts that hit the region. In slide eight, on the Paraná-Paraguay waterway, draft conditions remained normalized throughout the quarter, which allowed for strong recovery in volumes compared to last year. In the first nine months, we moved 4 million tons, with iron ore representing 76% of total corridor volume in 2025, up 50% in 2024, a very meaningful increase. Net operating revenue was $285 million for the quarter and $777 million year to date, driven by high volumes and a better product mix, which helped offset the negative impact from converting dollar-denominated revenue. Recurring EBITDA was $145 million for the quarter, a strong improvement over the Q2 and the Q3 of last year.
For the first nine months, it totaled $386 million, with a 50% margin, up 35 percentage points year over year. This reflects better operating conditions. Looking to the Q4, we've already seen lower water levels, which is typical for this time of the year. In response, we've implemented our low water plan starting in November. We expect volumes to be lower than in the Q3, but still above what we saw in 2024 when operations were heavily affected by drought. In slide nine, centers operation. In the Q3, we handled 484,000 tons, slightly below last year's volume, with a small deterioration in the product mix. For the first nine months, we moved 1.3 million tons, 13% higher year over year, driven by the start of salt operations at the end of the Q2 of 2024.
Partially offset by lower fertilizer volumes, n et operating revenue reached $36 million for the quarter and $101 million year to date, reflecting the additional salt volumes, though with a less favorable mix. Recurring adjusted EBITDA was $14 million in the quarter, down 12% year over year, and $35 million year to date, with a 34% margin, 9 percentage points below the same period last year, again due to mix and tariff effects. For the Q4, we expect results similar to those seen in the Q2. Finally, in slide ten, we'll discuss the coastal shipping operation. I'll keep this brief. Since we completed the sale in the beginning of November, we handled 892,000 tons in the quarter and 2.5 million tons year to date. Recurring adjusted EBITDA totaled $75 million in the first nine months.
Reflecting the impact of dry docking and lower operational capacity during the period. With the sale completed, we'll no longer report this segment starting the Q4 of 2025. In slide twelve, consolidated results. For the first nine months of 2025, we handled 14.3 million tons, up 14% year over year, mainly reflecting the recovery in navigation conditions in the southern corridor. Net operating revenue was $711 million in the quarter and $2 billion year to date, an increase of 32% versus last year. Recurring adjusted EBITDA reached $361 million in the quarter and $965 million year to date, up 65% compared to the same period in 2024, again mainly reflecting the improved conditions in the south. In slide thirteen, a look at our financial position, I highlight the reduction in leverage.
Which closed the period at 2.9 times net debt to EBITDA, well below the level seen in the Q3 of 2024. This improvement reflects not only stronger operational performance and cash generation, but also a higher cash position following the capital increase completed in May. As we mentioned in our last results call, we also took an important step in our financial strategy this year by restructuring part of our debt through the issuance of Hidrovias' fourth debenture guaranteed by Ultrap ar. With that, we purchased part of the 2031 bond, reducing our foreign currency exposure. That wraps up our presentation, and I now turn over to Delcio for the Q&A. We will now begin the Q&A session. If you would like to ask a question, please click on the Q and A icon.
At the bottom of your screen and type your question. To ask a question via audio, please click on the raise hand icon. Our first question comes from Pedro Itaú, BBA. Mr. Pedro, your microphone is open. Good morning, Delcio. Good morning, Delcio Heschman. Thank you for taking my question. First, I would like to explore the effect of ETC, and we had an expectation that the EBITDA margin would be similar in the Q3, but you commented that we still have some issues with the ETC, and I would like to know what operational results we can have in the region. That would be the first question. Now, looking at the south, we can see that there's a higher participation in iron ore. Since the other day, you'd already mentioned that you have that potential.
But I would like to know what operational leverage we can consider for the south, considering a higher participation of iron ore. Thank you very much. Hello, Pedro. Good morning. This is Heschman. Regarding the north, quarter over quarter, the mix is similar in terms of integrated volume. What happens is that this quarter we navigated a little bit less. Navigation is one segment of our operations which has the lowest margins. Having said that, when we consider the mix, we could be using more integrated capacity if the transport activities were adjusted. With that, we end up increasing the road transportation. Good morning. Thank you for your question. What is happening with transport water? For you to know, the beginning of the construction of the new transport area has already happened.
We anticipate that we will have this area paved, correcting the very large lanes in the last quarter of next year. So it will be totally operational in the end of next year. We're going to install provisional pavement, and the expectation for the next crop is to have less problems than we had this year, but the expectation is only for 2027. Would you like to talk about the south, Heschman?
Yes, perfect. Could you repeat the question about the south? It wasn't very clear to me. Yes, of course. I just wanted to better understand what the EBITDA margin could be for the south. We had better leverage because of more iron ore transportation. But looking ahead, what is the participation of iron ore going to be, and what will the operational leverage be?
When we look at the south corridor, we can see that the corridor has been an important player. There are two factors. As I mentioned, first of all, we had more favorable conditions this year. When we look at it in a more structural way and look at the long-term perspectives, I wanted to emphasize the seasonality aspect. In the Q4, we have lower water levels. Basically, when you have that, you can carry less per shipping, and it also takes more time for the cycle and lower margins. So when we look at the Q4, we have lower margins. When we think about the river, we usually have first and Q2s with lower results because of the level of the river. Now, looking at the corridor, and once again talking about the midterm.
T he south corridor is right now going through the effects of dredging. The perspective for the conclusion of the dredging and with the concession is being analyzed by our ports. Over the year, we will have an increase in our market share for transportation, especially of iron ore. This is what we anticipate for the south. That was very clear. Thank you very much. Our next question is from Gabriel Frazão, Bank of America. Gabriel, your microphone is now open. Bom dia, pessoal. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for the opportunity to ask this question. I have a question about the negotiation of tariffs for next year. Could you comment a little bit about these negotiations, and do you expect the scenario we had in the past years where Hidrovias had gains in the tariffs?
Would that be seen in '26, or should it be a little bit lower because of the amounts that you've been able to deliver in the past years? Gabriel, this is Delcio. Thank you for your question. Gabriel, first of all, I like to focus on the things that I can control, which are operational costs and efficacy. We have to learn how to make profits regarding the tariffs. We must be able to be profitable at any point in time. Having said that, we have positive expectations for the 2026 period, and we do not see a lot happening. But we consider a third-party terminal, our own terminal. We do have some contracts. But having said that, some corridors compete with us and are more flexible in their negotiations.
We are doing well. Similar to past years, the scenario is of normality, nothing different from previous years. Thank you very much, Delcio. Our next question is from Felipe Nilson City. Your microphone is now open. Hello, good morning. Thank you very much for the opportunity. I have a question related to CAPEX. In the ultra day, we talked about modular project opportunities. It was very illustrative in terms of how much CAPEX we could expect for this year and next year. I wanted to better understand CAPEX for this quarter. It was a bit lower than what we expected. Do you see it increasing throughout the Q4 and next year? How are these projects advancing? Could you tell us a little bit about this? Hello, good morning. Regarding CAPEX, this quarter, more specifically.
We concluded our first modular projects, CABRI, and it will start commissioning at the end of the year. The ramp-up will take place in the first half of next year. In terms of significant investments in modular projects, this is the main aspect. In the Q4, we have lower operations traditionally because of the level of the river. Looking ahead, basically, when we think about 2026 and the projects that are already ongoing and combined to natural maintenance expenses, we should not have any significant oscillation for 2026. It will be close to normality, and maybe the only expansion project which is already going on is the Tombador project. That was clear. Thank you very much. Our next question from Pedro Bruno, XP. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for the opportunity.
Part of my question has already been answered. It was about the south. But could you give me a little bit more detail about what we've already seen in terms of the dredgings that have been performed over the year with good effect, as Delcio commented, about the same level with more efficient operations? But I wanted to confirm that in the Q4, we should have improvements with results adjusted for the period. Also, I wanted to understand if these dredging projects are still ongoing. Delcio talked about these efforts combined with concessions. Could you give us an update and timing and maybe more operational explanations about dredging and rock removal work, regardless of the dynamics of the corridors and within the context that we've seen a faster decrease of the water level reading?
Of course, we have the seasonality, and one year is never the same as the past year, but I would like to have an idea. Pedro and Delcio, thank you very much for your question. Just to reinforce a little bit about what was mentioned regarding seasonality, we start with the low-level regimen so that we do not fully load our ships, and you cannot use everything together. You have to limit a bit and lose some capacity because the shipping time is longer. What is happening this year? Because we had some rock removal work, which has enabled us to move a little bit more. In the river today, we have 40 to 60 areas, but the dredging itself is on the way of navigation. So the perspectives with the conclusion of the dredging and rock removal work.
Which will continue for some time next year, is that we will be more resilient because of these investments that are being made and will have higher capacity as well. Thank you very much. Perfect. If we can have an update with what we expect, everything that is public in terms of updates and expectations in general and concessions as well. Regarding the concession, we will evaluate the participation or not. All is taking into account the financial return and guarantee of guaranteed navigation, actually. Perfect. Thank you very much. Our next question comes from Isabela Pacheco, Bank of America. Ms. Isabela, your microphone is already open. Our next question is from Isabela Pacheco, Bank of America. What leverage do you see for the end of this year and next year? Hello, Isabela. Good morning.
This is Heschman again. I think that the main thing we have to keep in mind is that our LTM EBITDA is $965 million. If you consider the same period last year, it was $586 million. When we look at the end of the year, we continue seeing, first of all, a third and Q4 that are much healthier than they were last year. That will be very helpful when we think about our net debt and the EBITDA. For net debt, we are in a very healthy position, and it will remain in the Q4 and next year. The company will have good leverage at the end of the year. Also, we have to take the following into account. Isso conclui a sessão de perguntas e respostas de hoje.
With this, we conclude today's session, and I would like to invite Mr. Delcio Amaral to move on with the final considerations. Please, Mr. Delcio, proceed. I would like to thank you all for your participation and questions. I hope that we've been able to address your questions, and we will meet again next quarter to talk about the closing of this year and the perspectives for next year. The conference call is now over, and we thank you all for your participation. Have a good afternoon.