In an effort to bring three long-dormant textile mills back into production, the Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC) plans to lease them out, officials said Sunday.
The three mills, located in Chattogram, Kurigram and Sylhet, have been idle for a long time. Of them, the Kurigram Textile Mills has 12,528 spindles, the Chittagong Valika Woollen Mills has 3,200 spindles and the Sylhet Textile Mills has 25,056 spindles.
"We have earmarked three textile mills for lease now," BTMC Chairman Brigadier General Md Ziaul Hoque told The Financial Express Sunday.
Under the terms of reference recently prepared by BTMC, companies that will take the mills on lease will have to maintain their original purpose and produce the same products as before.
Mr Haque said international tenders will be floated to attract investors to bring these mills back into production.
He said an earlier initiative to operate some mills under the public-private partnership (PPP) system failed to yield any success. Till now, no mills could come into production.
"Since we are not getting success through the PPP model, we are now exploring whether we can succeed in the lease system," the BTMC chairman said, noting that the new lease-out plan follows the failure of the PPP model to revive the production lines.
In resuming production, the BTMC identified that the lack of project loans and the absence of incentives comparable to those offered in economic zones were key factors jeopardising the PPP progress.
Officials said the Ministry of Textile and Jute formed a 10-member inter-ministerial working committee, headed by an additional secretary, last week to finalise lease-out conditions, procedures and proposals for the mills.
The BTMC began its journey in July 1972 with 74 mills acquired through nationalisation under a presidential order. Later, 12 new mills were set up, bringing the total to 86.
Currently, 25 mills are under BTMC's control. Eight of these are being operated on a rental basis, while production at eight others has been temporarily suspended. Two mills are being converted into textile villages and the BTMC has reacquired seven others.
Also, nine mills have been handed over to workers and employees, while 12 have been sold through tenders under the arrangement of the Ministry of Industries and the now-defunct privatisation commission.
Between 1977 and 1987, the BTMC also handed over 30 mills to their previous owners. It also sold seven mills through a liquidation cell. Three other mills exist only on paper, with no physical assets, according to BTMC officials.
Data shows that BTMC-controlled textile mills earned Tk 61.92 million in the fiscal year 2022-23, compared to Tk 68.76 million in the fiscal year 2021-22.
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