STAR BUSINESS REPORT

Maersk is building a 100,000-square-feet warehouse in the port city of Chattogram to expand its capacity, said the global shipping services company.

The three-storied facility is expected to go live by next month and will help address the warehousing capacity crunch faced by exporters out of Chattogram.

With this new warehouse, Maersk’s total warehousing footprint in Bangladesh will cross 300,000 square feet for its customers from early 2023, said the company in a press release recently.

“The upcoming facility is strategically located close to the Chattogram Port and easily connected to the Dhaka-Chattogram Highway through the Outer Ring Road and the Karnaphuli Tunnel, giving easy access to Bangladesh’s garment exporters based out of the nearby manufacturing hubs.”

Bangladesh is witnessing impressive growth in garments exports. However, the warehousing footprint in Chattogram has not increased proportionally.

This led the logistics company in February this year to team up with Ispahani Summit Alliance Terminals Ltd to establish a 200,000-square-feet warehouse. The facility was partially opened in August.

Its second phase will open in a week’s time and the rest by the end of 2022, said Maersk.

The company declined to disclose the investment amount involved.

The last two to three years have been extremely challenging for Bangladesh’s exporters. The Covid-19 pandemic caused many disruptions in the supply chains.

The acute imbalance in demand and supply of goods, bottlenecks in the logistics ecosystem, displaced workforce and congestion at major ports and warehouses led to unforeseen challenges in Bangladesh, said Angshuman Mustafi, head of Maersk Bangladesh.

“However, the pandemic also presented us with the opportunity to have meaningful dialogues with our customers and look into the future. We realised that the demand for warehousing space was rising and decided to undertake measures that could address this requirement proactively.”

Maersk has partnered with Vertex Off-Dock Logistics Services Limited to commission the new three-storied facility. The lift, conveyor belt and slider-operated warehouse will ensure higher productivity.

Internal and external parking facilities will allow for a higher number of trucks and vans to be accommodated within the warehouse.

Imran Fahim Noor, managing director of Vertex Off-Dock Logistics Services, said they are building the facility that has a modern integrated installation.

“By building efficient warehouses, we are catering to the demand of the country’s exporters and addressing their requirements to the level of international standards.”