We have achieved more than 54% market share in the Towage segment in Brazil due to our strategic geographic location, investments in our fleet, and the construction of our own shipyard, which is a key competitive advantage. For further information on the advantages of having our own shipyard, please see “Regulation.” We offer the following services related to towage:

• port towing, including support during the anchorage and unberthing of vessels in port terminals, as well as assistance in passing bridges and access channels to ports;
• maritime towing, including scheduling the towing of vessels that cannot sail without assistance, such as vessels in need of repair or floating structures without propulsion systems (barges and oil platforms);
• support to salvaging operations, including vessels that are in critical condition in the high seas or coastal areas, such as adrift vessels, grounded vessels, or vessels in otherwise dangerous situations; and
• extraordinary operations, such as support for operations in the offshore industry relating to equipment in drilling operations or operations for transfer of oil from platforms to ships.

Our fleet has 67 tugboats including both azimuth and conventional tugboats and 12 motor boats:

(1) Three of such tugboats are chartered in conjunction with Docenave. Our total fleet has 28 tugboats with azimuth propulsion, the most modern propulsion system for tugboats.
These tugboats have two engines with 360 degrees of horizontal freedom and can thus generate power in all directions, for safer and more efficient steering.
Our tugboats are 20 years old, on average, and we seek to continuously renew our fleet through the construction of new vessels in our shipyard. In 2006, we built two tugboats with 73 tons of bollard pull each, the maximum power in operation in Brazilian ports. Similarly, we built two new vessels in 2005 and one in 2004. All tugboats added to our fleet since 1994 are equipped with azimuth propulsion.
Our tugboats are located in all the main ports off the Brazilian coast, from the Port of Ponta da Madeira in the northern state of Maranhão, down to the Port of Rio Grande, in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul.
We have branches authorized to provide towing and salvaging support services in each of these ports.
In the Port of Ponta da Madeira, we operate through a consortium in conjunction with Docenave, a company of the Vale do Rio Doce Group. Each consortium member has a 50% interest in the operation of a fleet consisting of 9 tugboats, three of which are held by us, three by Docenave, and three are jointly chartered, with a purchase option at the end of the charter period. Please see “Business— Material Agreements” for further information.
In 2006, 2005 and 2004, we performed 57,359, 57,636 and 51,657 towing operations, respectively, representing approximately 54%, 57% and 57% of the total towing operations performed during these period in Brazilian ports, according to our estimates. Our net revenues in this segment was US$118.8 million in 2006.
Our fleet is built and continuously refurbished in our shipyard, located in the City of Guarujá, in the State of Sao Paulo. This shipyard specializes in the construction of tugboats and medium-sized vessels. See “Business — Non-Segmented Activities — Shipyard” for further information on our Shipyard and its strategic importance.