The Port of Quequen is located on the northeastern shores of Argentina’s Atlantic coast, about 368 kilometers southeast of Buenos Aires. It is a major grain port for the country. On the banks of the Quequen Grande river, the city’s name derives from the indigenous peoples’ word “Kem Ken” for high cliffs. On the opposite banks of the river is the city of Necochea. In 2001, over 14 thousand people called the Port of Quequen home.

Europeans first walked lands under the Port of Quequen in 1582 when a small group of soldiers led by Juan de Garay explored the area south of the Salado River. Garay noted the fertile land and plentiful livestock he found there. English missionary Thomas Falkner first recognized the need for a port here in 1748, but the city was not founded until 1854.

The urban area encompassing both the Port of Quequen and Necochea contains a population of 85 thousand on either side of the river. Necochea is a popular tourist resort. The surrounding area is rich farming land, so the city has many plants producing vegetable oils and seed by-products. Being a port, fish processing plants are also plentiful. The area is served well by roads, the Ferrosur Roca railroad, and a small domestic airport.

The Port of Quequen’s economy is dependent on the seaport, which is a major exporter of cereals, logs, forest by-products, and fish. Its food industry employs more than 2, 000 workers who collect and prepare grain and oilseeds.

The Port of Quequen (Spanish) is located at the mouth of the river Quequen, with Quequen city on the right bank and Necochea on the left. Over 250 vessels called at port in 2001. Almost five million tons of grain and agricultural by-products were exported from the Port of Quequen in 2001, including about three million tons of wheat and almost 700 thousand tons of maize. The Port of Quequen imported 211 thousand tons of bulk fertilizers in 2001.

The Port of Quequen has two breakwaters that protect the harbor. The entrance between them is about 220 meters wide and 12.2 meters deep. Plans are underway to extend the breakwaters to provide additional protection from the frequent southern swell. On the left bank, the Port of Quequen contains six berths.

Berth 1 is an open quay with 250 meters of frontage. It contains three mooring jetties with 11.6 meters draft. Pipelines connect the jetties with vegetable oil storage tanks, although the berth is also used for wood chips and agricultural by-products.

Berth 2 is an open quay with 90 meters of frontage and some apron space. It is fitted with pipelines to vegetable oil storage tanks with capacity for 53.7 cubic meters. This berth has not been used for a while, as improvement plans have not yet been realized.

Berth 3 was opened in 1986. The grain elevator berth contains three dolphins and berthing front of 140 meters and a depth of 11.9 meters. The elevator can store 155 thousand tons of grains and pipelines connect the dolphins to the storage tanks. New storage has been added with capacity for 120 thousand tons of grain and 45 thousand tons of fertilizers.

Berths 4 and 5 house the Terminales Quequen Grain Elevator berth with a 260-meter frontage and four dolphins with a depth of 11.6 meters. The elevator can store 116 thousand tons of grains. Berth 6 is an elevator berth with 110 meters of frontage and 11 meters draught.

The Necochea (Spanish) side of the Port of Quequen also contains six berths. Berths 7 and 8 are open quays of 240 meters with a depth of 8.5 meters. They are used by fishing vessels.

Berths 9 and 10 are open quays with 210 meters of frontage and depth of 9.7 meters. These berths are used for loading and unloading general cargo and bulk fertilizers. A new storage facility at Berth 11 has capacity to store 50 thousand square meters of bulk fertilizers unloaded at Berth 10. Berth 11 is open quay with two dolphins and 185 meters of frontage with about 7.6 meters depth. This berth has been block by fishing trawlers for some time.

Used by tankers to deliver fuel, Berth 12 has three dolphins of about 180 meters with a depth of almost 8 meters.

The Port of Quequen is called “tranquilo” with family homes that have names like “The Breezes of the Moon” and “The Snail.” Restaurants are all on the beach, and the bars are proud of their home-made reggae and hip hop.

The town is a favorite spot for beachcombers, para-gliders, and dreadlock-wearing fun-lovers. It offers plentiful sun and surf: its beaches are a great place to learn to surf because its shallow waters extend to deep breaking waves.

The beach at the Port of Quequen is beautiful, clean, and wide. Quequen’s only nightlife is found on the beach at “Jamming,” a local hostel just ten minutes form the main beach along a dune cliff.