MV Banglar Pragati begins maiden voyage, set to reach Ctg on Nov 20

CHATTOGRAM, Nov 16: MV Banglar Pragati, the newly-purchased vessel of Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC), has embarked on its maiden voyage, which will anchor at the outer anchorage of Chittagong Port on November 20.

The ship, built at Nanyang Shipyard in China, departed Dandong Port on November 4.

Managing Director (MD) of BSC Commodore Mahmudul Malek said, "We've rented the ship to a Hong Kong-based company for $20,000 per day. It's up to them to decide which port the ship will transport goods to. However, we're very happy that the first voyage is to Chittagong port."

Banglar Pragati, which is about 199 meters long, has a capacity to carry 63,777 MT of cargo. It is now transporting 61,500 MT of slag imported for the country's cement factories.

BSC, the lone state-owned shipping company, purchased two ships from a US-based company called Hellenic Dry Bulk Ventures LLC for Tk 9.36 billion through a competitive tender. One is MV Banglar Pragati and another is MV Banglar Nabajatra. MV Banglar Nabajatra is expected to join BSC's fleet soon.

It may be mentioned that BSC, which started its journey on February 5 in 1972, once operated 44 ships. By 2018, the number came down to just two. With the addition of the new ship, BSC now has six ships, including three oil tankers and three general cargo bulk carriers.

The BSC plans to procure 20 more ships, six of which are expected to join the fleet over the next couple of years.

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