No response yet from China over signing deal on funding

The government is yet to get any response from China to signing an agreement on financing for the proposed Karnaphuli tunnel construction, although a deal was inked with a Chinese company in this connection over a year ago.
The Bridge Division under the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges inked the deal with China Communication Construction Company Ltd (CCCC) in Beijing on June 30, 2015 to construct the country's first-ever tunnel at a cost of US$ 705 million.
The deal was done based on the state-owned Chinese firm's commercial proposal after getting recommendation of the Chinese ministry concerned to select the company as the project's contractor.
Official sources said since the signing of the deal, the Economic Relations Division has provided all necessary documents sought by the Chinese government funding agency-Exim Bank-in time.
"But we have yet to get any response in this regard till now," an official said, adding that the ERD completed the procedure in December last.
The Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) selected the CCCC to conduct the feasibility study on the proposed tunnel under the Karnaphuli River to connect the port city with economically backward zone of the district.
However, the project drew criticism after the BBA signed a memorandum of understanding and accepted the commercial proposal of the CCCC skipping allegation of violation of government public procurement rule to appoint the same company which carried out the feasibility study for constructing the tunnel.
Following the allegation, the BBA appointed an independent consultant to review the commercial proposal of the Chinese company and completed negotiations, reducing $ 60 million from the Chinese company's proposal.
The Karnaphuli tunnel project has been enlisted as a government's priority project as a MoU in this regard was signed during the Bangladesh Prime Minister's visit to China on June 9, 2014.
The BBA also signed a MoU with the CCCC on December 22, 2014 to take necessary preparations for implementing the project.
However, an ERD source said many of these kinds of deals signed with Chinese companies by different government agencies have been pending as the Exim Bank did not respond positively later on.
"No deal was signed with the Exim Bank during almost two years," he said preferring anonymity. He, however, expects positive response from the bank soon.
After signing the MoU during the Prime Minister's visit, the government requested the bank to provide loan at a rate of below 2 per cent interest which was not settled later on.
A BBA senior official, however, said project works have continued despite a delay in signing the financial agreement.
He said the BBA has already started the land acquisition process and the Chinese company continued design work to make the progress of the project on.
According to the feasibility study done by joint-venture Chinese and Hong Kong consulting firms CCCC and ARUP in 2013, the length of the proposed tunnel will be over 6.0 kilometres, including two approach roads to be constructed at the estuary of the Karnaphuli River to ensure connectivity of Chittagong city with the proposed deep-sea port and Cox's Bazar tourist town.
The government planned to construct the two-lane tunnel through the river with Navy College on one side and Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ) and Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company (KAFCO) on the other bank expecting that it would expedite industrial growth and urbanisation in other parts around the river.
The development project proposal for the Karnaphuli project was approved at a cost of US$ 1.05 billion on November 15, 2015.
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