Silt chokes Payra Port, forcing vessels to Chattogram
reducing ship calls. The consequences are now adding to port congestion, raising power generation costs at two coal-based plants, and exposing serious gaps in infrastructure planning
Highlights:
- Silted access channel has sharply reduced Payra Port ship traffic
- Foreign vessel calls collapsed despite Tk6,500 crore capital dredging
- Channel depth fell to 6.5 metres, blocking large ships
- Coal ships diverted via Chattogram, raising power generation costs
- Maintenance dredging stalled due to delayed government approvals
- Revenue pressure grows, full port operations likely delayed to 2027
Payra Port, conceived as Bangladesh's third seaport to reduce dependence on Chattogram and lower logistics costs, is edging towards functional irrelevance as stalled maintenance dredging has silted up its access channel, sharply reducing ship calls.
The consequences are now adding to port congestion, raising power generation costs at two coal-based plants, and exposing serious gaps in infrastructure planning.
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Port data shows that in the first half of FY26, only 17 foreign mother vessels called at Payra, down from 111 in FY23 and 123 in FY24. Even in FY25, when traffic had begun to taper, the port handled 85 ships.
The decline is striking given that more than Tk6,500 crore was spent on capital dredging to make Payra accessible to large vessels. Barely a year after completion, big ships are again unable to enter the seaport.
The problem lies in the Rabnabad channel, where heavy siltation has reduced navigable depth.
Officials said the draft has fallen to around 6.5 metres, down from the designed 10.5 metres, effectively barring large vessels and negating the benefits of capital dredging.
Coal ships supplying the Payra Thermal Power Plant and Norinco International Power Limited (RNPL) now unload at Chattogram's outer anchorage. The coal is then brought to Payra via lighter vessels, a slow, costly, and increasingly unsustainable workaround.
Additional lightering strains an already stretched system and has raised electricity generation costs by as much as Tk0.70 per unit, feeding into higher energy prices for consumers.
Payra Port officials blame the crisis on the absence of approved maintenance dredging following the 2024 capital dredging. Over the past year, unchecked siltation has steadily reduced channel depth.
A Tk6,500 crore maintenance dredging project has remained stuck at the proposal stage for nearly a year, officials said, citing the interim government's reluctance to approve major new projects.
Mohammad Jamal Uddin Chowdhury, member (harbour and marine) of the Payra Port Authority, said continuous maintenance dredging was essential immediately after capital dredging.
"That approval didn't come," he told The Business Standard. "As a result, siltation reduced navigability, preventing mother vessels with 8-10.5 metres draught from entering. Coal ships for the power plants now have to unload at Chattogram and be brought here through lightering."
He added that the authority plans to undertake both capital and maintenance dredging and has initiated steps to procure two trailing suction hopper dredgers (TSHDs) to maintain channel depth year-round.
The proposal, however, is still awaiting approval, delayed partly by the election period and the interim government's reluctance to take major policy decisions, said Jamal Uddin.
However, Shipping Adviser Shakhawat Hossain told TBS that delays in submitting the maintenance dredging proposal had worsened the situation.
"A hopper dredger will be required for this work, and procuring one takes time," he said. "The Payra Port Authority is now preparing a fresh proposal, which will take additional time."
On the port's prospects, he said it was too early to say.
Coal ships diverted via Chattogram, costs climb
During FY24, while capital dredging was underway, Payra regularly handled vessels with drafts of around 10 metres, carrying 40,000 to 45,000 tonnes of coal. At times, 12 to 14 coal ships berthed each month.
Now, large carriers are anchored at Kutubdia or Chattogram's outer anchorage, unloading cargo via lighter vessels in batches of 5,000 to 6,000 tonnes to the jetties of Payra Thermal Power Plant and RNPL.
"Big ships can't berth here anymore," said an engineer of the Payra Plant seeking anonymity. "The plant requires around 300,000 tonnes of coal monthly. Earlier, seven to eight mother vessels handled this directly at our jetty. Now over 200 lighterage vessels are needed."
He added that cranes designed for large ships struggle with smaller lighter vessels. "The process is slow and costly," he said, noting electricity production costs have risen by around Tk0.70 per unit.
Revenue pressure, levy proposed
Since commercial operations began in August 2016, Payra Port has handled 5,338 vessels, including 544 foreign ships, generating around Tk1,861.82 crore in government revenue up to 31 December 2025.
With foreign calls falling, revenue pressure is mounting. To fund dredging, the PPA has proposed an annual Tk700 crore levy on its two largest users – the 1,320MW Payra Thermal Power Plant and RNPL.
Together, the plants consume around 12,000 tonnes of coal daily, importing nearly 10 million tonnes annually, making uninterrupted maritime access critical.
"Our income has definitely declined," Jamal Uddin Chowdhury said. "Without a stable dredging mechanism, this situation will persist."
Big vision, unfinished port
Launched in 2013, Payra was initially conceived as a deep-sea port. The plan was later revised as a standard seaport, 65km inland at the mouth of the Rabnabad channel.
The Payra Port Authority was established under the 2013 Act. Feasibility studies were conducted by British consultancy HR Wallingford, and the masterplan prepared by Dutch firm Royal Haskoning in 2019.
Ships began calling at the outer anchorage that year. Since then, 5,338 domestic and foreign vessels have used the port, generating about Tk267 crore in revenue for the port until December 2025.
Payra remains under construction, with completion scheduled for December 2026. Work continues on terminal equipment, administrative and customs buildings, warehouses, and a six-lane road. Full operations, initially planned for July, are now likely to be delayed until January 2027 due to lack of dredging approval.
