Port development in Bangladesh is being taken to new depths.
Jan De Nul Group and Payra Port Authority (PPA) have signed a contract worth half a billion Euros to kick off the next dredging phase of Payra Port. The agreement is the result of five years of preparations and development planning, after both parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in May 2016.
David Jonckheere, area director at Jan De Nul Group, said: “We are dedicated and committed to our Client and all stakeholders, and are delighted to be able to contribute to the prosperous economic development of Payra and Bangladesh.”
Three-year project
The dredging works will start immediately and will take approximately three years to complete. Jan De Nul will mobilise several dredgers to perform the capital dredging works, deepening the port’s channel from the current 6.3 mCD to 10 mCD. After completion, Jan De Nul vessels will stay to maintain the depths in the channel. The port was originally going to be built as a deep sea port, but will now be a regular port, meaning it won't be able to serve ultra large vessels.
Last year, Jan De Nul dredged the initial opening of the Rabnabad Channel to a depth of 6.3 mCD. This dredging campaign allowed for the start of increased sea-bound activities to and from Payra. Since the end of 2020, the Jan De Nul vessels Diogo Caõ and Henry Darcy have been maintaining the depth of 6.3 mCD in the Rabnabad Channel under a follow-up contract signed with the PPA.
In the meantime, large civil infrastructure works on land are continuing to link the Payra Port region to Dhaka.
To enable the contract, PPA and Sonali Bank reached financial close in May, with support from Bangladesh’s Infrastructure Development Fund.
