A joint venture of Penta-Ocean Construction (65%) and TOA Corporation (35%) has recently secured a contract from the Chittagong Port Authority of Bangladesh for the Matarbari Port Development Project Phase 1 - Package 1: Procurement of Civil Works for Port Construction. It is scheduled for completion in 42 months.

The project is financed through a loan provided by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), involving the construction of a container and multipurpose terminal in the Matarbari area, Cox’s Bazar District, Chittagong Division. The main scope of the project encompasses the construction of a jetty (760 m long and 16 m deep), reclamation, soil improvement, paving work for the yard (36 ha), construction of buildings such as administration building, and various terminal facilities.

The container and multipurpose terminal will be located within the port built by Penta-Ocean as the port and land development work for the Matarbari Ultra Super Critical Coal-Fired Power Project (awarded in 2017), and the terminal will utilise the same navigation channel constructed then.

“In parallel with its robust GDP growth, Bangladesh’s container cargo demand is expected to surge. However, the Chittagong Port, which handles 98% of all container cargo, has only 9.5 m depth, and this necessitates the development of a new port that can accommodate the recent increase in the size of international ships and future cargo demand,” explained Penta-Ocean.

“As the first deep-sea port in Bangladesh, the Matarbari Port is supposed to handle up to 8,000 TEU-type container ships. This is expected to alleviate chronic congestion at the Chittagong Port, streamline logistics operations with the neighbouring countries, and thereby accelerate the economic growth in Bangladesh.”

Image: Penta-Ocean