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Draft masterplan for Bay Terminal finalised
Govt decides CPA, PSA Singapore, DP World of UAE will construct it
DWAIPAYAN BARUA, Ctg
Construction of Bay Terminal, a mega expansion project of the Chattogram port, has undergone further progress, with an international consultant having finalised its draft masterplan.
A joint venture of South Korean firms Kunhwa Engineering and Consulting Company Ltd and Daeyoung Engineering Company Ltd finalised the draft incorporating inputs from stakeholders and handed it over to Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) on Tuesday.
The CPA is preparing to send the draft to the shipping ministry within a day or two to seek approval.
The government has already selected two global giants in port operations -- PSA Singapore and DP World of the United Arab Emirates -- to construct and operate two of the three terminals of the project under public private partnership, said the CPA sources.
Inputs of these two firms have been incorporated in the draft, they said.
The size, layout of the three terminals and the road and rail connectivity points are described in the draft, they informed.
The proposed Bay Terminal will be set up on around 6-kilometre-long stretch from the back of Chattogram Export Processing Zone (CEPZ) to Rashmonighat on the Bay of Bengal.
The mega project comprising three terminals will be able to accommodate ships having a draft of up to 12 metres and with lengths of up to 260 metres and there will be no need to depend on the high tide to berth ships.
CPA Chairman Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail confirmed The Daily Star that the international consultant finalised the draft on incorporating all inputs from different stakeholders, including financer World Bank, and submitted it to them.
World Bank expressed interest to provide a loan of around $350 million for the construction of a breakwater and dredging channel of a channel leading to the Bay Terminal.
Prior to finalising the draft, the CPA arranged meetings with different stakeholders, including the two investors -- DP World and PSA Singapore, for their inputs, said sources.
Several international port operators had expressed interest to implement the mega project and later operate the three terminals.
The CPA will build a multipurpose terminal while the foreign firms the other two, said the port chairman.
“…the government decision has been taken in this regard,” said Sohail.
He informed that they would send the draft to the shipping ministry within a day or two for approval.
It will take some time for the approval to come about as the ministry will call a meeting to hear from the CPA regarding the draft, said the CPA chairman.
He hopes for construction on the ground to begin by this year.