The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) intends to appoint an operator for five years to handle containers and cargo at the Kamalapur Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Dhaka.

Last week, the CPA floated a tender inviting bids from interested firms to operate the ICD using their own equipment.

The authorities of the country's largest seaport began seeking a new operator as the existing contract with Saif Powertec Ltd., which has been managing the ICD for the past 10 years, is set to expire next month.

The inland container depot, located on land belonging to Bangladesh Railway (BR), is managed by the CPA for handling containers transported to and from the Chattogram port via rail.

The previous agreement for managing the ICD on BR's land was for 10 years. However, the railway recently signed a new contract for the ICD with a shorter tenure of five years, according to CPA Director for Traffic Enamul Karim. He declined to disclose further details.

According to the tender, the selected contractor will be responsible for loading and unloading containers from trains. The contractor will also handle appraisement, the delivery of containerized cargo, and the transfer of empty containers to designated areas.

Additionally, the operator will be tasked with ensuring the stuffing of export containers at the ICD.

CPA sources revealed that the government is building landing stations for Dhaka Metro Rail passengers on a portion of the Kamalapur ICD land, reducing the available area of the depot.

Given this situation, the government plans to relocate the ICD to a new location. As a result, the operator's tenure at the Kamalapur ICD has been shortened, according to a CPA official.

Approximately 70 percent of the containers handled by the CPA either originate in Dhaka or are destined for the capital city, which is surrounded by numerous export-oriented factories.

However, Bangladesh Railway can transport only a limited volume of containers due to the handling capacity constraints of the Kamalapur ICD.

In 2023, the ICD handled over 80,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of containers, which accounted for just 2.44 percent of the total 3.275 million TEUs handled by the Chattogram port.