PM to lay foundation stone on Nov 11

Construction work on the first terminal of Bangladesh's maiden deep sea port at Matarbari in the Moheshkhali upazila of Cox's Bazar will start soon as the tender process for appointing a contractor is in the final stages.

The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) has completed evaluating the technical and financial aspects of offers submitted by the Japanese joint venture contractor that qualified for the tender.

Meanwhile, the required concurrence from financer Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) has also been received, officials confirmed.

The tender process now awaits government approval, after which the contractor will be appointed.

Although terminal construction is yet to start, there has been visible development through the creation of a 14.3-kilometre-long artificial navigation channel stretching from the proposed terminal to the sea.

Coal Power Generation Company Bangladesh Limited (CPGCBL) created the channel under the Matarbari Ultra Super Critical Coal Fired Power Project before handing over responsibility to the CPA on September 20.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to inaugurate the channel as well as lay the foundation stone for construction of the first terminal on Saturday.

CPA Chairman Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail told The Daily Star that the tender process for appointing a contractor to construct the first terminal is in its final stages, with all the work at their end completed.

Mentioning that the Japanese joint venture led by Penta Ocean Construction Co Ltd had qualified for the tender, the chairman said the CPA finalised the evaluation of the offer after a long round of negotiations.

Penta Ocean Construction had also dredged the channel.

"Our job is done. Now we are waiting for some last moment formalities like approval from related authorities," the port chairman said, hoping that a contractor would be appointed shortly.

He hoped that construction would start from January and would take at best three years to complete.

According to project officials, the first phase of the Matarbari Port Development Project comprises of the first terminal, featuring a 460-metre container jetty and a 300-metre multi-purpose jetty, both with an 18.5 metre deep draft, alongside container yards.

It is expected to be operational by 2026.

Once the terminal is open, it will enable the accommodation of bigger vessels with the capacity to carry almost three times more cargo than the vessels currently anchored at the Chattogram port jetties.

The CPA chairman said vessels capable of carrying up to one lakh tonnes of cargo would be able to berth at the proposed terminal whereas the Chattogram port jetties can currently accommodate vessels with a maximum of 30,000 tonnes of cargo.

"The terminal will accommodate bigger container vessels, so we will be able to send our exports directly to Europe and the US from here. Our dependency on transshipment ports will end," he said.

It could be a game changer in the country's seaborne cargo transport efficiency and may become a regional hub, hoped Mahbubul Alam, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries.

The government geared up for a new commercial port at the same site as the Matarbari Coal-fired Power Plant when the deep channel for the power plant was being excavated.

Jica, which is funding the coal power plant, also suggested building a deep sea port in the area after its feasibility report discovered the deeper sea depth in Matarbari.

The Tk 17,777.16-crore Matarbari Port Development Project got approval from Ecnec on March 10, 2020.

The CPA and the Roads and Highways Department will implement the Matarbari Port Development Project.