By Tony Cantú  
Contributing Writer

In a first step toward becoming an international air cargo destination, Port San Antonio recently signed an agreement with a Mexico-based freight company to develop ground cargo routes.
Port officials forged the agreement with Estafeta, a company offering freight services in Mexico. In turn, Estafeta signed a side agreement with Tennessee-based Averitt Express Inc. to develop the service.

Jorge Canavati, vice president of business development for Port San Antonio, said the service would consolidate goods from several small- and medium-sized companies into one single cargo trailer to and from Mexico.

Up to now, such small companies have been forced to deliver their goods under so-called "LTL" conditions - less than trailer-load - in the absence of full-fledged cargo service designed for their needs, Canavati said.

The newly signed agreement will allow several companies to share delivery loads under a regular, albeit pending, transportation schedule. Expected to begin by mid-April, the arrangement would result in cost savings for participating companies and encourage more brisk business.

"Let's say you have an export company that has only five pallets," Canavati said in posing a hypothetical example. "This agreement makes it more cost-effective for them. We will be allowed to flow right through the interior of Mexico with scheduled service - three trucks northbound, three southbound. Our customers are just tickled pink over this."

But the big picture the agreement yields is even more ambitious than ground transport, he noted. Development of off-road cargo routes will construct a hub to be utilized when the port becomes a fully equipped point for international air cargo - an ongoing focus that saw recent gains through approval of millions of dollars worth of bonds toward that goal.

"We'll be able to start with this over-the-road service, and then tie it into air cargo," Canavati said. "Depending on bulk and distribution structures, we can link this to over-the-road service."

Estafeta, with its "very large and effective network," is already well positioned to help the port jump-start its air cargo goal, Canavati said. In addition to its large truck fleet operated by some 3,000 employees, the company owns six 737 aircraft outfitted for air cargo transport, he said.

Toward the port's goal of international air cargo, Estafeta would sign an agreement with TSM Integrated Logistics Company, an air cargo carrier already operating at Port San Antonio, Canavati said.

"It's things like this that can turn San Antonio into a distribution hub," he explained. "While we are beginning with 10 companies, the market for this service in the United States and Mexico is quite large."

Another advantage to the agreement is the ability to clear customs on the spot, further easing the process for small- and medium-sized firms availing themselves of the service, Canavati said.

Port San Antonio officials have long planned to convert the industrial park - the former Kelly Air Force Base - into an international air cargo player. On March 16, they came closer to achieving that goal with a state loan fund's approval for $38.3 million toward development of flex office/warehouse space and a 90,000-square-foot air cargo terminal by fall of this year.

The low-interest state funds will allow port officials to re-pay a same-sized bond issue its board previously approved toward such infrastructure development.

By his own admission, Canavati had hoped to wait longer until making a formal announcement of the landmark agreement with Estafeta. But buoyed by the energy of the 65th anniversary gathering of the National Importers and Exporters Association of Mexico in early March, he let word slip and the Mexican press got wind of the plans. Subsequent press coverage there forced his hand to prepare a hastily issued press release.

"When I announced this in Mexico, people just went nuts," he said. "We're still working out a lot of the kinks, and we still have to work on the marketing. We plan to have a reception and a red-carpet rollout in the next couple of months."