Quintana Roo Scraps Fifth Cruise Pier in Cozumel

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — The government of Quintana Roo has confirmed that a proposed fifth cruise ship pier in Cozumel, initially included in the state’s port development plans, will not move forward. The project, which had been under consideration for years, has been officially discarded by the current administration.

Project Inherited from Previous Administrations

Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa clarified that the proposal for the fifth pier was not initiated by her government but had been carried over from previous administrations. The plan was originally drafted by the Integral Port Administration of Quintana Roo (Apiqroo) and appeared in the agency’s five-year development program.

“This is not a proposal from this government, nor was it inserted during our term. It is a project that has been in the works for many years; it is not ours, and I want to make that very clear,” Lezama stated.

The governor emphasized that the plan would be removed from future port development strategies. However, the current five-year plan, approved by the General Directorate of Ports under Mexico’s Secretariat of the Navy (Semar) on July 29, 2024, remains in effect until 2029.

Competing Private Project Also in Question

The now-discarded public pier project had raised concerns about potential competition with a privately funded fourth pier initiative led by Muelles del Caribe S.A. de C.V. The private project, authorized by federal concession in 2021 with an estimated investment of nearly one billion pesos, has faced delays.

Specialized transport news outlet info-transportes.com reported earlier this week that the state government’s fifth pier plan could explain the lack of progress on the private venture. The proposed public pier would have expanded Cozumel’s ferry terminal northward to accommodate cruise ships.

Current Plan Still Includes Proposal

Despite the governor’s dismissal of the project, the 2024-2029 Master Program for Port Development (PMDP 2024-2029) still includes the fifth pier in its blueprint. The plan, presented in May 2024 by Apiqroo’s Director General, Vagner Elbiorn Vega, and Engineering Manager Juan Manuel Azueta Gorocica, outlines an L-shaped cruise ship dock adjacent to the ferry terminal.

No formal construction permits have been sought for the public pier, and the state government has confirmed it will not pursue the project. However, since the current five-year plan remains active, any official removal of the proposal would fall to the next state administration.