Chattogram Port, the country鈥檚 prime seaport, handled a record 32,96,067 twenty-foot equivalent unit containers in the just concluded 2024-25 financial year, posting a growth of 4 per cent from that of 31,68,690 TEUs in FY24. It set a new record in container handling, said the official data.聽
The container handling witnessed an increase of 1,27,377 TEUs from that of the previous financial year.
According to port officials, this marks the highest volume of container handling in the port鈥檚 48-year history of container operations, which began in 1977.
Omar Faruk, secretary of the Chattogram Port Authority, told 抖阴精品 staff correspondent in Chattogram that this was the highest container handling figure for the port, surpassing the previous record of 3.25 million in FY22.
鈥楾his achievement was made possible through the sincere and collective efforts of all stakeholders including the dedication of employees, officials, staffs and business stakeholders. We aim to maintain this momentum of growth and efficiency in the days ahead,鈥� he added.
According to London-based shipping publication Lloyd鈥檚 List, Chattogram Port ranked 67th among the world鈥檚 busiest 100 ports in 2024.
Saidul Islam, deputy commissioner of the Chattogram Custom House, the country鈥檚 largest customs station, said that they collected revenue worth Tk 75,432 crore in FY25, representing a positive growth of 9.71 per cent, up from that of Tk 68,755.7 crore in FY24.
According to the port data, in FY25, the port also handled 130.72 million tonnes of cargo, which was 123.24 million tonnes in FY24.聽
Moreover, 4,077 vessels arrived at the port throughout the FY25 period, it said.
Omar Faruk said that the port faced significant challenges in the past financial year, including the July uprising, prolonged flood, transport strikes, holidays during both Eid festivals and disruption in the customs office due to National Board of Revenue officials鈥� protests and then a complete shutdown.
In total, the port鈥檚 handling operations were delayed by about two months due to the mentioned challenges, though the port authority overcame these challenges, he added.
He said that had it not been for the NBR shutdown in the final 2-3 days of FY25, the container handling number could have reached a remarkable 33 lakh TEUs.
The official data also stated that container handling in previous financial years was 30,04,142 TEUs in 2020-21, 30,97,236 TEUs in 2021-22, 32,55,358 TEUs in 2022-23, 30,07,375 TEUs in 2023-24.聽
The container handling figures encompass operations from the main jetty, Kamalapur Inland Container Depot and the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal, covering both import-export and empty containers.
Nearly 99 per cent of the country鈥檚 container trade is handled by Chittagong Port, with Mongla Port handling the rest.
Moihiuddin Chowdhury, director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, told The 抖阴精品 that the port鈥檚 efficiency must be maintained at a global standard, even if there were ups and downs in the business.
He said, 鈥楥hattogram Port and Customs are at the heart of our export-import trade.鈥�
It was great news that the port handled a record number of containers in the past financial year, as it meant that the efficiency of the port was increasing, he added.
鈥楾o increase efficiency and to sustain such robust handling growth, the concerned must abandon the practice of disrupting port and customs operations in the name of protests and pressing for demand fulfilments, which we witnessed last two months,鈥� he added.
Chattogram port officials stated that key factors, such as automation services at the port, introduction of e-gate pass systems, modernisation of the container operating system and various infrastructure improvements, also contributed to the record growth.
Moreover, efforts of the port users, their preference for quick container delivery and maintaining constant communication with the port were also instrumental in this achievement, they added.
