The Bangladesh Railway (BR) finds it difficult to go ahead with the memorandum of understanding (MoU) it signed with a British company two years back for establishing Dhaka-Payra port rail link.
Sources said the BR signed the MoU with the DP Rail of Britain on December 20, 2016 to develop a 240 km rail track along with an investment proposal of around US$ 7.5 billion for its construction.
As per the agreement, the company was supposed to conduct a feasibility study and submit a commercial proposal during the MoU's 18-month tenure that ended on June 19, 2018.
Rushanara Ali, a member of British Parliament and UK Prime Minister's Trade envoy, and Alison Blake, the British High Commissioner in Dhaka, were present at the MoU signing ceremony.
Alison Blake and DP Rail Representative Syed Muhammad Faruqi Hasan also signed the MoU as witnesses, on behalf of the UK company.
However, none from the company contacted with BR or any other government agencies since signing of the MoU, the sources added.
"No person from the company was seen during the last 18 months," said an official preferring not to be named.
Contacted, officials of the railways ministry, shipping ministry and the Public-Private Partnership Authority (PPPA) said the DP Rail initially contacted the PPP Authority showing interest to invest if the Payra port is developed as a deep-sea port.
But even after the PPP Authority assured the company of the Payra port's status as deep-sea port, no-one from the company contacted any of the three authorities afterwards, they added.
Sources said the BR has recently taken up the issue with the Ministry of Railways to take a decision on the MoU. But the issue was held up for reasons unknown.
Later, an office note of the BR has suggested leaving the issue 'as it is' for the time being, they said.
The Shipping Ministry and the PPP Authority were involved in the process of signing of the MoU.
The Shipping Ministry had first selected the British company to implement one component (rail link), out of 18, of its Payra Port development project.
But the work of this component was later shifted to the BR after the state-owned rail track developer claimed that this job is under their jurisdiction as per rules of business.
Sources said the BR initially was unwilling to accept the DP Rail's proposal as it conflicted with its own proposal to develop Padma Bridge rail link from Dhaka to Jashore.
But the BR finally signed the MoU after receiving a directive from a committee formed under the PPP Authority in this regard.
According to the MoU, the DP Rail was supposed to design, finance, build, operate and maintain 240 km Dhaka-Payra railway and the China Railway Construction Corporation (International) Ltd. would act as the principal civil engineering contractor.
Additional Director General of Bangladesh Railway M Rafiqul Alam and Chief Executive of DP Rail Ian S Derbyshire signed the MoU on behalf of their respective sides.
A senior official of the PPP Authority said on condition of anonymity that as the Dhaka-Payra rail track project was not an approved PPP project, they did not follow up the developments regarding it.
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