Online Desk:  A delegation of Abu Dhabi Ports Group will visit Chittagong Port on Monday with an intention to invest in the construction of Bay Terminal.

Official sources have said foreign investors are showing interest in constructing Bay Terminal under a joint venture after the land dispute created over construction of the terminal has already been settled.

CPA Secretary Omar Faruk said, “The Abu Dhabi Ports Group is interested to build one of the four terminals in collaboration with the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA). So, a delegation of the group will visit Chittagong Port from May 13 to 15.”

CPA officials say the Abu Dhabi Ports Group is keen to invest a staggering $1 billion in the terminal construction.

The Abu Dhabi team will visit the site of Bay Terminal, discuss mode of operation with the CPA and sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), they add.

Rear Admiral Mohammad Sohail, chairman of the CPA, said, “Many foreign investors are investing in Chittagong Port. Singapore Port, Maersk Group and Abu Dhabi Port are interested to invest in Chittagong Port.”

The Bay Terminal at Chittagong Port will be constructed with full foreign investment, he added.

“We want to see a competition in operational activities with other ports. So, we are leasing out our terminals to foreign operators,” the CPA chairman says.

The CPA is going to set up Bay Terminal soon on 900 acres of land on the Patenga coastline with all modern port facilities.

After the construction of the terminal, the container handling capacity will increase up to 5 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) from the existing 3.1 million TEUs a year.

Bay Terminal is also expected to contribute 2 to 3 per cent to the growth of the national economy. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated its construction in 2018.