Western Marine builds ship for UAE buyer

Bangladesh's leading shipbuilder Western Marine Shipyard yesterday handed over a landing craft tank to Al Rashid Shipping Ltd of the United Arab Emirates.

The deal was signed in 2015 and the craft took around Tk 10 crore to build in compliance with Bureau Veritas. It will be used on routes along the Mediterranean Sea for trading and loading goods off shore.

Named “Ajman Trans”, the vessel is 65.48 metres in length and is capable of enduring low draft and moving across shallow water, Western Marine's Deputy Managing Director Mohammed Abdul Mobin told the handover ceremony in Chittagong city.

Chairman of the company Md Saiful Islam said they were building two more for Bangladesh Army. The construction is a milestone in the country's emerging shipbuilding industry, he said.   

Managing Director Md Sakhawat Hossain said, though the industry was making good operational profits, the high interest rates and short repayment periods on infrastructural investment were taking a toll on net profits.