Chittagong port ready to open up to neighbours

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Chittagong port ready to open up to neighbours
Says CPA chairman
Staff Correspondent, Chittagong

Chittagong port is ready to carry out the government’s decision to open it to neighbouring countries, said Chittagong Port Authority Chairman RU Ahmed yesterday.

To enhance the port’s dynamism and efficiency, various development projects are now under implementation, the CPA chief added.

He was speaking at a ceremony on the port’s 123rd founding anniversary at the Chittagong Port Training Institute auditorium.

Focusing on the port’s performances, he said the port handled a record number of container and cargo in 2009 when the number of vessels reported at the port was also a record.

During the period, the port handled 11,61,470 TEUs (Twenty Equivalent Units) of containers, up from 10,69,999 TEUs the previous year, and 3,48,44,574 tonnes of cargos against 2,81,97,569 tonnes in 2008.

Two thousand one hundred and sixty seven vessels reported at the port in 2009. The numbers were 2,099 and 1,945 in the past two years.

CPA also succeeded in bringing down the container dwell time (average stay time of container) to 16.68 days from 18.28 days and 22.92 days in 2008 and 2007 respectively and sustained the ship turnaround time at 2.48 days from 5.02 days in 2007, the port authority chairman said.

However, the volume of export and import container handled at the inland container depot (ICD) in Dhaka decreased to 63,780 TEUs from 82,454 TEUs in 2008 and 80,714 in 2007.

Chittagong port earned Tk 1133.72 crore in 2008-09 fiscal year in revenues that were Tk 1057.04 crore in 2007-08 and Tk 830.02 crore in 2006-07.

“We had a revenue surplus of Tk 464.41 crore after paying Tk 273.56 crore in taxes,” RU Ahmed said.

Giving details on ongoing projects, he said installation of container terminal management system (CTMS) and MIS, which aims at computerising container terminal operation at the port, is expected to complete by the year-end.

“Sixty percent of the projects has already been done.”

If CTMS is implemented, electronic or automation system will replace the paper-based documentation and increase the port’s efficiency by several times, RU Ahmed added.

To enhance handling activities, an agreement was signed to procure 16 handling equipment. Some of the equipment, including six straddle carriers, five reach stackers and five forklifts, are expected to reach the port in a month or two, Ahmed further said.

“CPA has got approval of the cabinet purchase committee to engage contractors to develop backward facilities behind the berth number four and five to ensure utmost use of New Mooring container terminal.”

Tender has been floated for pre-qualification bidding to appoint a contractor for the much awaited capital dredging and bank protection project, he added.

Replying to a query of a journalist the CPA chairman also said tender processing might be completed by May or June to procure a floating crane with a capacity ranging from 400 tonnes to 600 tonnes by the middle of next year.

Regarding steps to strengthen security, he said a two-stage gate was set up and opened on December 19 last year as part of introducing digital system in maintaining security.