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Rod, cement makers eye big business from Padma bridge

Sarwar A Chowdhury
The Padma bridge project has opened business opportunities for local manufacturers of construction materials, especially cement and rod.
They are brimming with confidence as they have already supplied quality construction materials for some key infrastructure projects such as Jatrabari-Gulistan and Kuril flyovers and the Hatirjheel project.
The local firms also provided cement and rod for the construction of the approach roads towards the Padma bridge.
Now that the government finally signed an agreement with a Chinese firm on building the main component of the bridge and there are no conditions on who to supply construction materials, the local companies are gearing up for the biggest infrastructure project of the country.
Shafiqul Islam, project director of the
bridge, said both local and foreign companies may supply the construction materials. "We will only see the quality."
The construction of the main part of the bridge, including river training, will cost around Tk 20,000 crore.
Jashim Uddin Khandaker, vice-president (sales and marketing) of Holcim Bangladesh, a leading cement maker, said concrete is a major construction material and they have introduced a concrete solution targeting big infrastructure projects like the Padma bridge.
"We have already conducted research in our own laboratory on the construction materials that can be used in the project," he said, adding that they may bring in foreign expertise, if necessary.
"There is no need to import construction materials like concrete and cement. We are ready to supply them," he said.
construction materials for the main bridge as well.
Mohammed Jahangir Alam, chairman of MI Cement Factory that produces Crown brand cement, said they have experiences of supplying quality construction materials - both cement and rod -- for mega infrastructure projects.
"We have participated in the Jatrabari-Gulistan and Kuril flyovers and are now supplying materials for the approach road," said Alam, also managing director of GPH I spat, a steelmaker.
"We have confidence that we can provide quality products in time for the bridge project"
Bangladesh has the capacity to produce around 70 lakh tonnes of rod a year, while
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Holcim contributed to some big infrastructure projects such as Bhairab and Rupsha bridges, Hatirjheel project, and Kuril and Jatrabari-Gulistan flyovers.
Bangladesh's cement production capacity is almost double its requirement at 18 million tonnes a year, Khandaker said. "Quality also matches international standards."
M Firoze, head of marketing and product development of BSRM Steels, said whether the local companies will qualify for supplying rods for the bridge project will depend on quality and timely delivery.
"We are already providing rods for culverts and bridges on the approach roads," he said. They hope to supply