The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) is preparing to take over the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) for now, as the current contract with private operator Saif Powertec Ltd is set to expire on July 6.
CPA floats tender for equipment as it awaits ministry's nod to operate terminal
The yards at the Chattogram port, which are designated for storing containers loaded with imports, exceeded their capacity yesterday as daily handovers to consignees did not gain pace during the Eid-ul-Azha holiday over the past week.
Containers packed with imports are starting to pile up at the Chattogram port due to a drastic drop in the delivery of goods, as factories and vehicles are yet to resume running in full swing amidst the Eid-ul-Azha holidays.
The debate over whether to lease out the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) at Chittagong Port to a foreign operator is intensifying, with political parties, including the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, and left-leaning groups, uniting in opposition.
Picture a crowded harbour where the salty seabreeze carries whispers of far-off lands, where merchants of all creed and caste haggle over silks and spices, and where towering ships of all varieties – Chinese junks, Arab dhows, and Portuguese carracks – sway gently in the waters of the Bay of Bengal.
The US government’s recent announcement to hike the tariff on Bangladeshi goods by an additional 37 percent has already begun affecting the country’s readymade garment (RMG) industry, according to a leading denim exporter.
Concerns are increasingly being voiced over the Chattogram port’s largest terminal, New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT), being leased out to a foreign operator, as the interim government furthers the initiative undertaken by the previous Awami League government.
CPA seeks shipping ministry’s intervention
The shipping ministry has withdrawn the fixed freight rate for vessels on the Chattogram-Pangaon route in a bid to revive cargo transport via river, which has seen a drastic decline over the past year.
Agreements between vessel owners and mainline operators will determine it
Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) has threatened hiking fourfold its container storage charge if consignees do not speed up the rate at which they take away imports by March 9.
The Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) is going to purchase six modern container ships from South Korea at a cost of $330.32 million to break the stranglehold enjoyed by non-Bangladeshi feeder vessels, which results in the loss of a substantial amount of foreign currency in freight costs.
The Chattogram port has been facing acute congestion caused by a pileup of import-laden containers, particularly ones bound for the Kamalapur inland container depot (ICD) in Dhaka.
The Chattogram port has been facing acute congestion caused by a pileup of import-laden containers, particularly ones bound for the Kamalapur inland container depot (ICD) in Dhaka.
It was a pleasant experience for drivers of cargo and container-carrying vehicles to gain much quicker entry to Chattogram port yesterday as the port authorities introduced a digital payment system for access through all eight gates.
Mother vessels are provided with only one lighter vessel against the demand for four
A long queue of inbound vessels has formed at the outer anchorage of Chattogram port as sufficient berths are unavailable due to delays in scheduled departures caused by disruptions in container movement late last week.
