Maersk to set up warehouse in Chattogram
Maersk is going to set up a customs bonded warehouse in Chattogram in its bid to strengthen its footprint in Bangladesh, a move that will provide much-needed relief to exporters and global buyers from congestion.
The global freight forwarder said it is establishing the 200,000-square-foot warehouse in partnership with Ispahani Summit Alliance Terminals Ltd (ISATL).
ISATL, the country's one of the leading private inland container depots, will construct a brand new customs bonded warehouse on the existing premises of the facility located at Pathortoli in the port city.
The warehouse will double the existing capacity of the depot and add around 8 per cent additional space to the existing ecosystem in Chattogram, said Maersk in a press release yesterday.
The construction of the container freight station (CFS) has already commenced and is expected to be completed in a phased manner by the end of 2022.
Bangladesh's exporters and their overseas buyers will be able to start using the facility from July 2022, once the first phase is completed, said Maersk.
The disclosure comes at a time when Chattogram port is registering an increasing flow of containers buoyed by Bangladesh's growing shipment of goods abroad and imports to feed the fast-expanding economy.
The port, which handles around 90 per cent of the country's international trade, recorded a 13 per cent year-on-year growth in container handling in 2021. It managed 32.14 lakh TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of export, import and empty containers last year.
Maersk has been operating for almost three decades in Bangladesh, one of the most important sourcing markets for the garments and apparel industry worldwide.
Despite the impressive growth of garment exports from the country, the number of warehouses in Chattogram has not increased since 2012 with the sole exception of ISATL, which became operational in 2018, said Maersk.
The logistics ecosystem and the Chattogram Port get stretched, particularly during peak seasons.
In 2021, a fallout of this structural challenge was felt by all the stakeholders involved in import-export trade when the CFS got clogged with cargoes, resulting in delayed clearance, stuffing and consequently dispatch of containers to the port.
The delay in offloading cargoes also led to a longer truck waiting time, Maersk said.
"Maersk's commitment to connect and simplify our customers' supply chains means that we look at long-term solutions for problems such as the longstanding congestion within the ecosystem," said Angshuman Mustafi, managing director of Maersk Bangladesh, in the press release.
He said the company tackled the situation in 2021 by deploying an additional vessel for evacuating export-loaded containers.
"By partnering with ISATL, we are establishing a facility that has the potential to partially decongest the system from the land side and streamline the flow of cargoes in and out of Bangladesh."
Yasser Rizvi, managing director of ISATL, said, "We are proud to partner with Maersk on this exciting long-term project where ISATL's extensive local experience combined with Maersk's international best practices will allow us to create a truly world-class facility that will help raise the standards for the entire industry."
ISATL, located over 31 acres of area, has two bonded warehouses presently, according to Mehadi Hasan, general manager and head of operations of the facility.
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