Bangladesh to buy 10 new ships

FT ONLINE

To modernise the shipping sector, the government of Bangladesh will buy 10 new ships.

State Minister of Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said this at the 42nd annual general meeting of the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) on Sunday at the Chattogram Boat Club.

"In the future, the BSC will be able to create an important position not just in Bangladesh, but also in the world. The discussion for bringing the 10 new ships to Bangladesh is going on with Denmark and China," said the state minister.

The state minister also said, "The Payra port has been established along with the modernisation of the Chattogram port. We will start a 1360 MW coal-based power plant. A deep seaport is being constructed in Matarbari as well. In addition to fuel and coal, the BSC ships will also transport liquid natural gas (LNG)."

The BSC earned Tk222 crore 98 lakh in the 2018-19 financial year with an expenditure of Tk175 crore. There is a surplus of Tk55 crore 23 lakh.

The government is working on making the BSC a profitable organisation. It requires skilled manpower in order to compete with the world's largest shipping lines.

BSC Managing Director Commodore Sumon Mahmud Sabbir spoke at the meeting. The programme was moderated by BSC Secretary Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury.