Pipes and equipment worth hundreds of crores lie idle for six years, Ctg customs stuck over auction hurdles

Highlights 

• 1,900 large pipes and eight containers of fittings have been lying idle at Ctg Port since December 2019
• Customs blocked the release as the importer brought used pipes instead of new ones
• The pipes are being moved to the CHC auction yard to ease port congestion

For the past six years, a large amount of dredging equipment — comprising 1,900 large pipes and eight containers of fittings — has remained abandoned at the Chattogram Port, with no resolution in sight. 

The shipment, valued at hundreds of crores of taka, has become a logistical and legal headache for the Customs House, Chattogram (CHC).

The equipment, imported on 9 December 2019, by Dhaka-based Changing Dredging Private Limited, includes 1,900 pipes measuring 20 and 40 feet in length, along with eight containers of assorted pipe fittings and machinery.

However, customs authorities blocked the release of the goods after it was discovered that the importer had brought in used pipes instead of new ones.

According to customs officials, the 2,700 metric tonnes of pipes were declared at an import value of Tk80.5 crore, while the fittings and equipment in the containers, weighing 83 metric tonnes, were valued at Tk3.7 crore. 

The entire consignment was manufactured in China and shipped to Chattogram via Singapore.

Despite the passage of years, the importer has not taken delivery of the goods, and legal complications have prevented the customs authorities from putting them up for auction. 

"Unlike other goods that can be auctioned directly, these pipes require prior approval from the Ministry of Commerce," said CHC Assistant Commissioner Md Sakib Hossain. 

"We are preparing to seek that permission soon," he added. 

In the meantime, the oversized pipes, originally stored in sheds at Chattogram Port, are being gradually transferred by lorries to the CHC auction yard in an effort to ease the growing space shortage at the port.

The Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) had handed over the bill of sale for the pipes to customs back in 2020, intending for the goods to be auctioned. However, the lack of necessary government approvals has left both the port and customs authorities in a difficult position. Storing such large and immobile cargo has disrupted regular operations.

CPA Secretary Omar Faruk said, "Due to the space occupied by the pipes, we were facing difficulties in accommodating other cargo, resulting in financial losses." 

"That's why we handed them over to customs," he added. 

CHC spokesperson and Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Saidul Islam confirmed that while the goods have officially been transferred to customs, they still cannot proceed with the auction without approval from the commerce ministry, as the import permit is registered in the name of a certified organisation.