The
Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) officially invited larger ships to take a berth
in its jetties, to enhance productivity, leading to low import costs of cargo
benefiting the consumers according to Dhaka based newspaper reports..
In a circular dated March 19th, the Chittgong
Port Authoirty said, from now on, ships of 200-meter long and 10-meter draft
will be able to take berth at the jetties. “…vessels having LOA (length
overall) up to maximum 200-meter length and 10-meter draft may be allowed to
take a berth in jetties depending on prevailing real-time hydrological
condition,” the port authority said in the circular.
In the past
190-meter long and up to 9.5-meter draft vessels were allowed to take berth at
the port jetties which have
capacity to carry up to 2,200 TEUs. With the same length and water draft a bulk
carrier vessel can carry less than 30,000 tons of cargo.
With the new length and water draft allowed
Container vessels carrying over 3,000 TEU vessels will be able to come to the
Chittagong port jetties while bulk carriers will be able to dock with 40,000
tons of cargo.
In the face of repeated calls from the
shippers as well as foreign ship liners to accommodate larger vessels, the port
authority in November 2020 appointed London-based consultancy firm HR
Wallingford to study the port’s navigation capacity. The firm conducted a
hydrological and hydraulic study based on which the port authority dredged some
parts of the Karnaphuli River. Following that the CPA board in a resolution on
December 27 last year approved allowing the berthing of 200-meter length and
10-meter draft vessels, but the decision remained ineffective as no circular
was issued.
The port authority conducted a trial run of
accommodating larger vessel on January 16th this year and a Marshall
Island flag carrier ship namely “MV Common Atlas” berthed at a jetty of the
port. Another large vessel of 200-meter size also anchored at the newly built
Patenga Container Terminal on February 26th proving that the navigation channel
and berthing area were suitable for docking larger ships.
Syed Mohammad Arif, chairman of the
Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association (BSAA), hailed the issuance of circular
allowing the berthing of larger vessels and noted this will help cut import
costs and also lessen congestion at the port.