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CHATTOGRAM, Apr 26: The Patenga Container Terminal will be commissioned in June this year, marking the first time a foreign company will manage a terminal at Chittagong port.
The container terminal, financed by the port itself, has been awarded to Red Sea Gateway Terminal International of Saudi Arabia under a 22-year operation deal. An agreement was signed with the company in December last year.
Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Secretary Omar Faruk said the container terminal's launch, originally scheduled for April, has been delayed due to ongoing procedures.
Container terminals facilitate the loading of export containers onto ships and the discharge of containers carrying imported goods. According to port officials and business people, the import-export trade is expected to accelerate once the new terminal opens.
According to CPA officials, awarding the container terminal to a foreign company aimed to introduce competition among terminal operators and provide port users with international-standard services.
The Patenga Container Terminal is equipped with modern handling equipment, including key gantry cranes (KGCs) and rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs), sources said.
The terminal's proximity to the Karnaphuli River estuary allows for swift vessel berthing. Situated on 32 acres of land, the terminal boasts three berths with a total length of 600 metres and can accommodate three vessels exceeding a draft of 9.5 metres simultaneously.
Red Sea Gateway Terminal will not be able to operate the key gantry cranes initially, according to CPA Secretary Omar Faruk. "However, the company will take steps to bring them in within the next few months. Container handling will begin using the ship's cranes in the interim."
The Patenga Container Terminal, funded by the CPA with a cost of Tk 1,299.58 crore, can accommodate three container ships with a maximum length of 190 metres and a draft of 9.5 metres simultaneously.
Besides, the terminal's Dolphin Jetty can berth one oil tanker with a maximum length of 290 metres.
On December 6 last year, the CPA and Red Sea Gateway Terminal signed an agreement at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to operate the terminal for the next 22 years.
Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail, Chairman of the CPA, and Jeans O. Foley, CEO of Red Sea Gateway, signed the agreement. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al Falih witnessed the signing ceremony.
A total of five terminal operators expressed interest in the new terminal, including A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk), Red Sea Gateway, Dubai Port World (DP World), Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd, and PSA International.
Following government-to-government negotiations between Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Red Sea Gateway and the Bangladeshi Ministry of Shipping in 2019. Subsequently, the ministry appointed Red Sea to operate the terminal.