A decision on the next course of action focused on the Bay Terminal project of the Chattogram port will be taken following a cabinet discussion.

Adviser to the Ministry of Shipping, Brigadier General (retd) M Sakhawat Hussain, informed this during a discussion on the project involving senior officials of the ministry yesterday afternoon.

The maritime advisor chaired the meeting which was attended by senior officials from different government authorities and representatives of development partners.

Sources present at the meeting said CPA officials provided a detailed presentation of the project, focusing on its importance and necessity to accommodate large vessels as well as the progress made in its implementation.

Representatives from the World Bank and two global port operators, PSA Singapore and DP World, attended the meeting and gave assurance on investment in the project, they said.

Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Secretary Md Omar Faruk said representatives of all stakeholders highlighted the requirement and importance of the project.

He said the advisor to the Ministry of Shipping had informed that since a new caretaker government was in place, the cabinet would hold a discussion on the project and decide on the next course of action.

The World Bank has already approved $650 million for the construction of a breakwater and dredging of the shipping channel for the proposed terminal. However, no agreement has yet been signed in this regard.

The previous Awami League government was in talks with PSA Singapore and DP World of the United Arab Emirates.

The two companies had proposed investing $1.5 billion each to build two container terminals in a project based on a public-private partnership model.

A “development project proposal” was sent to the Ministry of Planning before the fall of the previous regime last August, and since then the project has seen no progress.