Chattogram Port: Shipping agents seek 3-month grace as vessel cut planned to ease congestion

Shipping agents today (31 July) urged the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) to allow a three-month grace before implementing a plan to reduce 15 ships from the approved list.

The Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association submitted a letter today in response to a directive issued by the Port Authority on Tuesday, which called for 15 container vessels to be dropped from the regular port call schedule within 48 hours.

The letter, signed by the association's Chairman Syed Mohammad Arif, warned that a sudden cut in vessel numbers could seriously disrupt the country's trade flow and damage Bangladesh's reputation in the global shipping network.

According to the association, removing 15 ships from service at Chattogram Port would affect the transport of at least 30,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of import and export containers each month. "Such a move will disrupt existing shipping schedules and increase freight rates significantly, possibly leading to the imposition of surcharges by main line operators," the letter stated.

The shipping agents' body noted that its members represent foreign main line operators, and it is both technically and commercially unfeasible to make abrupt changes to vessel deployment. The association urged the Port Authority to reconsider the directive and observe the situation for the next three months before taking any drastic decisions.

The association outlined a series of recent challenges contributing to the increased vessel waiting time at Chattogram port's outer anchorage. These include: A complete work slowdown by National Board of Revenue (NBR) officials.

Around 66 public holidays and festival-related closures in the last six to seven months. Frequent breakdowns of container-handling equipment, especially at the Chattogram Container Terminal. Strikes by prime mover owners. Weather-related delays during the monsoon season. A "go-slow" by berth operators in early 2025 due to tariff disputes.

These factors, the shipping agents' body said, are primarily responsible for the recent surge in ship queues, not the total number of vessels.

Alternative solutions proposed

To ease the situation without reducing vessels, the association proposed more efficient use of the Patenga Container Terminal. Currently, two container ships per week from one operator are handled at Patenga Container Terminal, with plans to increase that number to eight vessels monthly. The shipping agents' body has encouraged other shipping lines to route vessels through Patenga Container Terminal as well, which it believes could significantly ease the burden on the main port berths.

The association also cited port statistics to show the current number of active vessels: 125 in January, 107 in February, 110 in March, 113 in April, 116 in May, and 108 in June. This trend, the shipping agents' body argued, shows a relatively stable volume of port activity that could be managed better through improved planning and infrastructure use rather than vessel reduction.

Earlier, during a port management meeting on 20 July, Chattogram Port Director (Traffic) Enamul Karim revealed that the number of permitted vessels had gradually increased from 96 at the start of the year to 118, mostly through ad-hoc approvals. This rise, he explained, has led to longer wait times and more congestion at the outer anchorage. At the beginning of the year, ships waited only 1-2 days on average, with 7-8 vessels in the queue. That number has since risen significantly.

To restore efficiency and protect the port's international reputation, Enamul recommended that the number of permitted vessels be capped again at 96 to 100.

When contacted about the shipping agents' body's response, Captain Mohammad Zahirul Islam, deputy conservator of the Chattogram Port Authority, said he was not yet aware of the letter. "Once received, the letter will be forwarded to the port management for consideration," he told TBS. "The management will then decide on the next course of action."

Currently, eight of these feeder ships are operated by Karnaphuli Group, while the rest are run by major international players such as Maersk Line, MSC, CMA CGM, SITC, Express Feeder, SOL, Hyundai, Cosco Shipping, Samudera, and PIL.