According to international media reports Thursday, the government of Uruguay has decided to build its first-ever deepwater port on the country's Atlantic coastline. Construction will begin in 2014, and once completed, the port would largely export iron ore to China.
The port could handle about 18 million metric tons of iron ore per year and make Uruguay the eighth-largest producer of the key steel-making ingredient, according to Montevideo, Uruguay-based miner Minera Aratiri.