Congestion at Bangladesh’s largest seaport has made it more difficult for workers to unload containers from vessels on time, and delays in the arrival of export containers from depots have further complicated matters.
According to Bangladeshi publication The Business Standard, vessels docked at the Chattogram Port could previously complete loading and unloading within 48 hours. This process now takes more than 96 hours as space constraints at the port persist.
As of Tuesday, more than 20 container ships are currently waiting to berth at Chattogram, with average berthing delays rising to seven to 10 days, according to container shipping analysis firm Linerlytica. Data from freight management and container tracking software GoComet lists the median delay at six days, with import dwell for containers reaching eight days and export dwell totaling five days.
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Operations at the port have been hamstrung since mid-July, as deadly student protests broke out across Bangladesh over quotas in government jobs. Days of unrest resulted in a government-imposed curfew, a nationwide internet blackout and mass closure of factories, before Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country on Aug. 5. An interim government has been put in place, but the country’s future appears to have more questions than answers.
For six days, the Chattogram Port (also known as Chittagong Port) was closed, stalling container movement entirely until it was reopened June 25. This created a ripple effect as trucks and vessels alike piled up outside the hub, and containers across terminals were unable to be moved.
In one example of the congestion outside the port, container ship Sol Promise arrived at the outer anchorage of Chattogram on Aug. 4, carrying imported goods from Colombo. Yet the vessel has been unable to dock for unloading and remains anchored as of Monday.
According to the report, the delay will cost the shipper of the cargo at least $1.5 million in demurrage fees since the vessel has been idle for eight days. The Bangladeshi government had waived demurrage fees at the end of July, but exclusively for the country’s vital garment sector.
This is a major difference from just one month ago, The Business Standard said, when cargo ships could typically berth at the port within a day of arriving at the outer anchorage.
As a result of the ongoing disturbances, export container handling at Chattogram Port had a 16.4 percent month-over-month decline in July to 59,845 exported 20-foot equivalents, or TEUs, from 69,662 TEUs in June.
The congestion at sea and slower unloading doesn’t appear to be impacting total import volumes, with the port handling 114,455 imported TEUs in July, 0.1 percent down from the 114,591 TEUs the month prior.
Currently, 43,941 TEUs are stored in the port’s yard, which has a storage capacity of 53,518 TEUs, but ideally requires a load of 30,000 to 32,000 TEUs for optimal operations.
Chattogram Port Authority secretary Mohammad Omar Faruk said that while container congestion is gradually easing, it may take another seven to 10 days for operations to return to normal levels.
To help alleviate the port’s container congestion, the authority requested importers to take deliveries on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, in addition to regular working days.
In one positive development, rail operations between Chattogram and Kamalapur Inland Container Depot resumed Sunday night after 23 days of suspension, according to Farouk.
The service, which carries containers from the port to the container storage facility, had been completely halted on July 19 following the imposition of the curfew in the wake of the protests and violence.
Kamalapur is one of 21 inland depots in Bangladesh built to alleviate congestion at the main port by adding more area for container handling.
On Sunday, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association held a meeting with other industry stakeholders including the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Bangladesh Textile Mills Association to voice concerns with an Army-led joint task force to ensure the smooth operations of the garment sector amid the protests.
The organizations are seeking better security for cargo-carrying vehicles on roads and highways, further exacerbating the loading and unloading of goods at Chittagong Port. Businesses and logistics companies alike have reportedly not wanted to move cargo since there is no traffic police presence on the highways near the port.
They also highlighted delays in clearing goods at Dhaka Airport and requested that the Bangladesh Army step in to expedite these processes.