China has offered preferential loan to renovate the Karnaphuli Paper Mills (KPM) in Chittagong to enhance its production capacity to 30,000 metric tonnes a year, reports UNB.
In a letter to the Industries Secretary on December 5, 2014, DGM of the China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation (CMC) Zhao Zhengxian also requested the Bangladesh government to take necessary steps for signing an MoU between CMC and Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) to facilitate the works.
Sources at the Economic Relations Division (ERD) said an international tender for Balancing, Modernisation, Rehabilitation and Expansion (BMRE) of the Karnaphuli Paper Mills (KPM), established in 1953, was invited during the 1996-2001 AL government, and the CMC was awarded the contract through an international competitive bidding process.
The sources said an agreement was then signed between the CMC and the Finance Ministry for implementing the project under suppliers' credit and a work order was given to CMC on May 31, 2001. But the BNP-Jamaat alliance government, after assuming office, shelved the US$ 87-million BMRE project without assigning any reason.
The Awami League government, after assuming office for the third time, reopened the project and it was discussed at a meeting held on March 23, 2014 with the BCIC chairman in the chair.
Later, a CMC delegation visited the KPM on March 25, 2014 and put forwarded a preliminary ideas on the BMRE of KPM on April 7, 2014.
CMC DGM Zhao Zhengxian in the letter said following discussions with the KPM officials they have made two proposals-one is installation or construction of a new paper mill with production capacity of 48,000 metric tonnes per year and another is renovation of the existing paper mills with production capacity of 37,500 metric tonnes.
China offers preferential loan to renovate KPM
FE Team | Published: December 20, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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