Arrival of larger ships at Chattogram Port besides capacity expansion and draft enhanement speeds up cargo delivery, cuts transit time, cost

Stakeholders have attributed this growth to relatively larger ships now being able to dock at the port’s jetty with more containers and goods on board, improving trade efficiency.

Chattogram Port officials and stakeholder institutions said that enhanced navigation facilities along with the arrival of larger vessels have allowed for the transportation of more goods despite the reduced number of ship arrivals. According to shipping agents, a 190 metre vessel with a 9.5 metre draft can carry 2,500 to 2,600 containers, whereas a 200 metre vessel with 10 metre draft can carry 3800 to 4000 containers at the port.

Chattogram Port Authority Secretary Md Omar Farooq told TBS, “The port has significantly benefited because of the increased draft limit, as ships can now transport a significantly larger volume of containers.”

Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association Vice Chairman Mohammed Shafiqul Alam Jewel told TBS, “Our [the port’s] success lies in the increase of the draft limit, the expansion in enhancing shipping capacity and reducing transportation costs.”

According to Chattogram port data, container handling during the nine months of the 2023-2024 fiscal year reached 2,338,361 TEUs, with cargo handling totaling 91,649,659 tonnes. In July-March of the 2022-23 fiscal year, the number of containers handled were 2,159,695 TEUs and cargoes handled were 87,804,837 tonnes.

Currently, the total number of jetties, where container ships and open cargo are unloaded, at Cattogram Port is 18. In January 2015, the draft of the port was increased to 9.5 metres and since then, the trade volume has been increasing every year.