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New private ICD in Ctg becomes fully operational

From Jasim Uddin Haroon | Sunday, 31 August 2008


PATENGA (Chittagong), Aug 30: Incontrade, a private inland container depot (ICD) in the port city built at a cost of Tk 1.0 billion, is now fully ready to handle empty, as well as export and import containers, its owners said Saturday.

The ICD has been built on 23 acres of land at the estuary of the river Karnaphuli and very close to the Chittagong port.

"We are fully ready to handle all export, import and empty containers at our depot and we expect we will begin barge operation shortly to give service to the industries located outside Chittagong with competitive charges," Yussuf Abdullah Harun, Chairman of the Incontrade, told the FE.

This will be the country's first ICD out of fifteen which will be giving barge services to cargoes plying to and from Chittagong port.

It is expected that the transportation of containerised goods through barges and subsequently their export will reduce cost by around 65 per cent compared to the cost in traditional transportation by road.

Apart from this, use of riverine route will help reduce traffic congestion in Dhaka-Chittagong highway.

"We shall conduct barge operation after getting required permission from the Chittagong port, which will help reduce cost of the exporters. Importers will be able to take delivery of their cargoes through river routes," said Mohammed Amirul Haque, a director of the Incontrade, told the FE.

They said they might offer the barge service within next nine months.

The newly built ICD has the capacity to handle more than 150,000 containers a year, which might be 15 per cent of the containers handled by the Chittagong port in fiscal year 2007-08.

ICDs handle almost all export cargoes and limited import cargoes to facilitate the trade of the country.

"There are dozens of ICDs in the port city. So there is a scope for competition. As a result, this competition leads to providing better services to the consignees and recruitment of highly professional manpower", Amirul added.

The owners claimed that the ICD would be the largest one after commencement of barge operation.

Presently, Essack Brothers Container Terminal, an ICD near Chittagong Customs House, is the country's largest ICD.

Incontrade, very near to Chittagong Shah Amant International Airport, has a three-storeyed container freight station with a total space of 3,28,416 square feet, which is the single largest in the country.

The yard developed by the ICD is 6.5 metres higher than the runway of Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport to combat any surge of water.

The terminal, also near the Patenga sea beach, is equipped to store about 7000 containers including 50 refrigerated ones at a time.