Congestion hits Ctg port

Chittagong port is experiencing container congestion, largely due a slow delivery of cargo due to Eid holidays.

As of yesterday, a total of 28,328 TEUs (twenty equivalent units) of import containers piled up at the port yards, exceeding the port's capacity of 26,857 TEUs of such containers, according to the traffic department of Chittagong Port Authority or CPA.

The situation was worse for FCL (full container load) containers, as 26,277 TEUs of FCL containers were stuck at the port until yesterday, while the designated space for such containers could accommodate only 22,485 TEUs.

There were over 31,000 TEUs of all types of containers, including empty, FCL, LCL (less than container load) and export containers in the different yards, occupying 85.35 percent of the port's storage capacity.

Although the port was closed only on the Eid day, the import containers could not be delivered on time in the last few days, as clearing and forwarding agents were still on leave.

The delivery of containers came down to only 354 TEUs in the 24 hours to 8am on September 27, while 2,500 to 3,000 TEUs of containers usually get delivered from the port on a normal day.

Moshiur Rahman Beg, acting director (traffic) of CPA, said it is a common phenomenon during Eid.

Rahman would not call it congestion and said there was no hike in the vessel stay time at the port jetties since CPA managed to unload and store the import containers on time.

However, the vessel operators fear that if the congestion cannot be cleared within a few days, the situation could be worse with more import cargo coming in.

Shahed Sarwar, executive director of K Line Bangladesh, said it usually takes 16 to 18 hours to complete discharge of import cargo from the vessels, but it is now taking around 48 hours.

As most garment factories would operate in full swing by next week, the volume of export containers would also increase; so it is vital to clear the congestion now, he added.

Moshiur Rahman, an official of CPA, hopes the situation will improve in a few days as delivery has already picked pace.