In the just concluded fiscal 2023-24, Chattogram Port witnessed a paradoxical trend – a 6.63% decline in ship handlings juxtaposed with a notable rise in container and cargo handling by 5.36% and 4.18%, respectively.
The puzzle unfolds as follows: the easing of global commodity prices and the dollar crisis, coupled with a reduction in ship waiting times and an increase in the port’s draught from 9.5 metres to 10 metres, has enabled Chattogram Port to handle more cargoes compared to the previous year.
As a result, these factors not only collectively facilitated efficient performance throughput but also boosted the revenue of Chattogram Custom House by nearly Tk6,000 crore, or 9.42%, despite the drop in ship numbers.
Talking about the growth, Mohammad Omar Faruk, secretary of Chittagong Port Authority, told The Business Standard, “The waiting time for ships at Chattogram port is now one to one and a half days. Moreover, the increase in the draught limit has made way for larger ships to enter the port.
“These factors have mainly contributed to the growth in cargo and container handling compared to last year.”
According to the port authorities, 15 years ago, the average waiting time for ships at the outer anchorage was 12 days, but that has now been reduced to one to one and a half days. Sometimes, ships can directly berth at the jetty from the outer anchorage, with some even receiving on-arrival berthing.
Improved equipment has also reduced the time ships spend at the jetty. Now, ships can unload imported goods, load goods for export, and leave the jetty within two to three days, speeding up container, cargo, and ship handling processes.
According to port data, in the recently concluded fiscal year, Chattogram Port handled about 31.68 lakh twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers, 12.32 crore tonnes of cargo and 3,971 commercial ships.
In comparison, the previous fiscal year saw around 30.7 lakh TEUs of containers, 11.83 crore tonnes of cargo and 4,253 commercial ships being handled.
Since January 2015, the port’s jetty has had a draught limit of 9.5 metres, allowing ships up to 190 metres in length. However, on 19 March 2023, Chattogram Port increased the draught limit to 10 metres and permitted ships up to 200 metres in length to dock.
According to shipping agents, a 190 metre vessel with a 9.5 metre draught can carry 2,500 to 2,600 containers, whereas a 200 metres vessel with 10 metre draught can carry 3,800 to 4,000 containers at the port.
Mohammed Shafiqul Alam Jewel, vice chairman of the Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association, told TBS, “Though the number of ships arriving at the port has been reduced, the draught limit increase has benefited container and cargo handling.
“Previously, the lower draught limit restricted the number of containers that could be loaded on a ship but the increased draught limit has enhanced the ship’s capacity.”
According to Chattogram Customs House, the revenue for the fiscal 2023-24 was Tk68,562.72 crore, an increase of Tk5,904.91 crore from the previous year’s Tk62,657.81 crore.
However, this was Tk9,053.28 crore short of the revenue target of Tk77,616 crore for the year.
Regarding the increase in revenue, Chattogram Customs House Deputy Commissioner Saidul Islam said Customs had taken various measures to prevent fraud and evasion of duty to maintain revenue growth. Moreover, increased imports have also contributed to the increase in revenue this fiscal, he added.
