BSC invites firms to study if it can go big

With larger business and diversification of its services on sight, the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) has moved to conduct a study and assess the opportunities in merchant shipping, officials said.
The state-run corporation has recently invited an Expression of Interest (EoI), seeking consultancy services from firms having experiences of feasibility study on container vessels, multipurpose vessels, LNG bunker vessels, tanker vessels, and others.
In accordance with the EoI, the selected firm would suggest ways of capacity enhancement and develop a business model, prepare the outline technical specifications and cost estimation of proposed vessels considering global trade, and facilitate funding/financing and planning.
The firm will also study organisational reform of BSC and suggest acquisition of ship(s) in joint ventures and formation of various subsidiary companies under the BSC's own supervision.
The firm will also be tasked with the responsibility to analyse gaps in the legal framework and suggest necessary remedial steps alongside conducting a feasibility study on development of ship building and ship repairing facilities.
The consulting firm needs to have experience of working as a consultant with seaports and shipping organisation authorities in the world within the last 10 years and have experience of working as a legal consultant with any government-owned shipping company in the world within the last 10 years.
The firm should have at least two resource persons having 15 years of high-level functional experience of the legal system of Bangladesh including laws, rules, regulations, policies and principles which taken together make diagnostic survey and remedy thereof to achieve the goal as set out for organisational reformation.
The firm's resource persons shall consist of one or more experienced maritime expert(s) in the relevant field.
Earlier, the BSC signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Marine House-the Relief Group (MRG), a newly-formed company jointly owned by a law firm and a consultancy house, to work on maritime commerce business expansion.
However, the company has never worked on such a huge job, sector insiders alleged, expressing scepticism over the expected performance.
Under the MoU, MRG will assist BSC to start shipping business as an NVOCC (non-vessel operating cargo carrier) or box operator, and mainline operator or vessel-operating cargo carrier.
The BSC wants to launch feeder service, short-sea shipping, conventional liner service, project and heavy lift carrier, inter-modal door-to-door combined transport-service provider, off- dock and container-freight station, sea-and air-cargo forwarding and handling agencies, and logistics services, in cooperation with the MRG.
The MRG has been tasked to create new and grab existing opportunities of BSC operation within the purview of the MoU, find out an innovative implementable approach to doing shipping business in the regional and international routes of waterways, and to provide ways and means for expansion of operations of liner services.
Also, the 'inexperienced' company will find merchandise goods in bulk in an uninterrupted supply chain to feed the ships in BSC fleet operating in and connecting different trade zones to and from Bangladesh, and also between third countries.
The BSC has moved to work with the MRG after being advised by its parent organisation, the ministry of shipping, which wants the corporation to work beyond the boundary in shipping business to earn and save foreign currency, sources said.
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