Sirajganj Industrial Park ready to welcome investors

After more than a decade of delays, extensions and revisions, Sirajganj Industrial Park, situated some 120 kilometres northwest of capital Dhaka, is at last ready to welcome investors.

Plot allocations officially began last week, with 72 entrepreneurs receiving letters of allotment.

The Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC), which is running the industrial park, now hope to attract between $300 million and $500 million in foreign direct investment, mostly from China.

This would be the largest of such inflow into any BSCIC estate to date.

Located along the banks of the Jamuna river, the 400-acre park (roughly the size of 300 football fields) is connected by river, rail and road.

This multimodal access, coupled with its proximity to north-central Bangladesh's population centres, gives the park strategic appeal.

Construction was declared completed in January after 14 years since construction first began, with the total cost amounting to roughly Tk 719 crore, more than double the initial estimation of Tk 388 crore.

However, some critical infrastructural gaps remain.

TWO-THIRDS OF PLOTS RESERVED FOR CHINA

The estate consists of 829 industrial plots, of which 550 have been reserved for Chinese investors, pending approval from the Ministry of Industries.

"China has submitted a proposal to invest in the park. We have forwarded it to the ministry and are now awaiting a policy framework to proceed," said Md Mahabubul Islam, deputy manager of the Sirajganj BSCIC office.

According to the BSCIC officials, the government in 2023 amended a law that had previously restricted foreign investment to the BSCIC estates. A policy is now in the making as per amendments to set up a framework for foreign investment.

"A draft policy has been prepared. Once it is approved, we'll enter into formal negotiations with the Chinese side," said GM Rabbani, a deputy general manager at the BSCIC headquarters in Dhaka.

Officials estimate that the proposed Chinese investment could create as many as 100,000 jobs, with locals comprising 80 percent of the workforce.

Inside the park, each industrial plot is at least 10,000 square feet, roughly the size of two basketball courts, while some larger plots of 20,000 square feet are also available.

Internal roads range between 50 feet and 80 feet in width. The layout includes a 17-acre reservoir, a dumping yard, and provisions for effluent treatment plants (ETPs), a requirement that interested investors have agreed to meet.

"A green environment is a priority. All interested investors have agreed to install ETPs," said Sajid Ul Islam, project director of the park.

In the first phase, a total of 80 entrepreneurs were selected to be allotted 196 industrial plots early June. Of them, 72 were finally handed over plots. The proposed investments are for diverse sectors, ranging from chemicals to dairy products.

"In the second phase 83 plots will be allotted. So far, 20 entrepreneurs submitted applications for 52 plots," said the project director.

"We are expecting to finish plot distribution within this year," he said.

ON-SITE READINESS NEEDS MORE TIME

Even though plot distribution has begun, several critical infrastructure works remain incomplete. Entrepreneurs say that significant portions of land are unlevelled and unsuitable for construction.

"The park is a good place for investment. It offers a green environment and ample communication facilities," said Md Abdul Kader, one of the entrepreneurs who were allotted plots there.

"But the poor land development work worries us over the timely establishment of factories," he said.

"The authority has assured us that they will hand over the plot within a month following procedures, but the plots are not ready at all," he said.

"We (investors) will hold a meeting with the authority next week seeking to complete the rest of the land development work before the handovers," added Kader, who wants to establish a flour mill in the industrial park.

The BSCIC officials admitted that about Tk 12 crore worth of land preparation, including filling and levelling work covering some 1.5 crore square feet, remained unfinished.

"We had asked the contractor firm to finish the levelling work, but they did not do it. After the changeover in government in August 2024, the remaining work was left incomplete," said the project director.

"If the contractor does not complete the work, then we will search for another company for it," he said.

Energy supply is another issue. Although gas pipelines have been laid, gas transmission is still in progress.

According to a senior official at Paschimanchal Gas Company Ltd (PGCL), one of the three required transmission sections has been set up, while the other two are under tender.

The official, requesting anonymity, said, "The PGCL aims to finish transmission infrastructure by mid-2026. However, commercial gas supply will ultimately depend on government authorisation."

Once all the 829 industrial plots in Sirajganj Industrial Park go commercial, the park is expected to generate two lakh jobs, hopefully uplifting the local economy, according to park officials.

Officials expect to wrap up all the required official procedures within this year and investors to go for establishing factories by early next year.

If foreign investment is allowed then the full-fledged operations of factories in Sirajganj Industrial Park will begin within one year, said the project director.