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ELEVATED EXPRESSWAY

Talks stuck on interest rate

STAFF CORRESPONDENT
The first official level negotiation between Dhaka and Bangkok on constructing a 20- kilometre elevated expressway in Dhaka ended inconclusively yesterday mainly due to differences on the interest rate of the loan to be provided by a Thai bank, meeting sources said.
The Thai delegation proposed to construct, as the first phase of the
project, an expressway approximately 13 kilometres long, from Gulistan to the existing flyover at Mohakhali, at an estimated cost of Tk 1,218 crore with the money from Export Import Bank of Thailand.
While the Thai side wanted the loan to be provided as a commercial loan, the rate of interest for which is 6-7 per cent, the Bangladesh side wanted the money as a soft loan, at an interest rate of less than 2 per-
cent.
Besides, Thailand wanted to implement the project with their contractors but Bangladesh wanted to engage contractors of both the countries.
As the meeting preferred top level political discussions between the two governments for reaching a consensus on the rate of the interest for the invested money, technical
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aspects of the project and other terms and conditions predominated the meeting.
Kanthong Unakul, deputy director general of the South Asia Division of the Thai foreign ministry led the six-member Thai delegation that included Sataporn Jinachitra, president of Export Import Bank of Thailand.
Communications ministry's Joint Secretary Mushtaq Uddin Ahmed led the host.
The decision of constructing a 20-kilometre long elevated expressway in Dhaka was first taken during Thai Premier Thaksin Sinawatra's visit to Bangladesh in August 2002.
The matter was also discussed during Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's visit to Thailand last year.
Bangladesh formed a task force on August 23, 2004 following the visit.
The Thai government had earlier proposed to provide 60 per cent of the cost as a loan from the Thai commercial bank and 20 per cent as technical support from the Thai government. The remaining 20 per cent was supposed to be provided by the Bangladesh government.
The six-member Thai delegation is scheduled to leave Dhaka today.