Green tech-based brick kiln gets Tk 33cr funding

Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund (BIFFL) has raised Tk 33 crore to help Asim Auto Bricks Industry set up an energy-efficient and eco-friendly brick manufacturing factory in Tangail's Mirzapur.

BIFFL, Mercantile Bank and Meridian Finance & Investment are providing Tk 20 crore, Tk 10 crore and Tk 3 crore respectively as loans, says a statement.

To mark the financial closure, BIFFL organised a ceremony in a Dhaka hotel on Tuesday.

Addressing the event, BIFFL Chief Executive Officer SM Formanul Islam said reducing environmental pollution caused by traditional brick kilns has become a matter of urgency.

He said the government was determined to phase out these illegal kilns.

There are 7,000-8,000 brick kilns of the old-style design and these are responsible for causing about 37 percent of the environmental pollution in Bangladesh, as per the environment department.

“To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, it is important to promote green brick industries as an alternative to outdated technologies,” said Islam in the statement. 

He said BIFFL was committed to supporting this industrial transformation.

The state-run financial institution has already invested Tk 50 crore in four green brick projects and has 20 more in the pipeline. It plans to invest in at least 100 automated tunnel kiln technology-based projects by 2021.

Asim Auto Bricks is expected to come into operation by February 2018. It will produce 1 lakh bricks per day.

Meridian Finance & Investment CEO Mafizuddin Sarker and Mercantile Bank Deputy Managing Director Zakir Hossain also addressed the event.

Representatives of Bangladesh Bank, Asian Development Bank and the Department of Environment were present.