A total of 24 new pieces of container handling equipment, including four quayside gantry cranes (QGCs), purchased by Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) at a cost of Tk 394 crore were launched yesterday.

State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury formally inaugurated the launch of the equipment at a brief ceremony at the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) of the port.

He said that the modern equipment being installed at Chattogram port would speed up loading and unloading activities.

The country's capacity in the maritime sector is being upgraded through several projects such as the development of the Mongla port and the establishment of the Payra port, Matarbari Deep Sea Port and Chattogram's Bay Terminal project.

"These are a part of capacity-enhancement measures and we want to progress more," he said.

When asked about the appointment of foreign operators in the port, the minister said a number of renowned global port operators had shown interest in investing in Chattogram port and had submitted their proposals.

"We want to work with them while protecting the interests of Chattogram as well as the country," he said.

Mentioning that Bangladesh is now keeping pace globally, the minister said: "If any global firm wants to work with us while protecting the interests of Bangladesh, we will welcome them. This is the policy of the government."

The 24 new pieces of equipment have been added to the port's fleet gradually over the past two and a half years. The four QGCs and four rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) were added to the NCT last year.

CPA Chairman Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail said the port's container handling capacity was enhanced to a great extent through the installation of high-capacity modern equipment.

Nazmul Haque, executive director of NCT's private berth operating firm Saif Powertec, said overall productivity of the NCT had noticeably improved.

Now, the NCT has 14 QGCs.

In each of the four jetties of the NCT, 30 to 35 containers can be handled per hour. Previously, 20 to 25 could be handled per hour, Haque said, adding that ships' stay time in NCT jetties had been reduced to 48 hours from 72 hours.

Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association Chairman Syed Mohammad Arif said the addition of new QGCs and modern equipment like 100-ton mobile cranes would enhance the port's capacity and efficiency.

Although Bangladesh's import and export volume has dropped in recent months following a global economic downtrend and forex reserve crisis in the country, the economic situation will change in the future, he opined.

Considering future pressure, CPA's move is timely and the authority should collect more modern equipment in a continuous process since its old equipment is losing efficiency, he said.

The new equipment is part of the purchase of a total of 104 pieces of equipment by the CPA under a Tk 914 crore project initiated in 2020 aimed to enhance the port's operational activities and speed up import-export activities.

Under the project, CPA purchased four QGCs, the most necessary and effective container handling equipment, from Chinese company Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company Limited (ZPMC) at a cost of Tk 243.58 crore.

As for the other equipment, the CPA procured six RTGs from ZPMC for Tk 70.83 crore, four reach stackers from Germany for Tk 14.13 crore, four variable reach trucks from Finland for Tk 25.76 crore, two container movers for Tk 7.49 crore, two 100-ton mobile cranes from France for Tk 20.09 crore and two 50-ton mobile cranes for Tk 11.44 crore.

CPA officials informed that work orders for the purchase of the rest of the equipment under the project had already been placed and hoped it would arrive in the coming months.