Asia/Pacific News
Rising Bunker Bills Making Old Vessels Too Costly to Run
The state-owned Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) says it will buy 20 efficient modern ships by 2020, because rising bunker bills and other escalating costs are making older vessels too expensive to operate, Bangladeshi newspaper the Daily Star reports.
"We have now decided to sell out all the ships that are not economically viable," said managing director Commodore Moqsumul Quader.
The new vessels will replace a fleet that is now 28 years old on average.
The company, which has raised Tk3.1 billion ($39.8 million) through public stock offerings, is buying a 40,000 tonne-capacity product tanker for about Tk1.2 billion ($15.4 million), with delivery expected in September.
It has also entered into a joint venture to buy a "mother tanker" with a capacity of more than 100,000 tonnes for about Tk3 billion ($38.5 million) to be delivered in November.
"This would facilitate transportation of crude oil for Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation," said Quader.
The company also plans to have three product carriers and three bulk carriers built by Chinese shipbuilders through a soft loan agreement with China.
"We hope to sign the final agreement within the next few months and get delivery within 18 months of signing," Quader said.
BSC now has 13 ships in its fleet, down from 32 when it was formed in 1972, and no new ships have been bought since 1991.
Quader said International Maritime Organisation (IMO) rules keep it from operating globally.
"Despite these impediments, our ships are operating regionally, in particular, in India, Myanmar and China and also in Qatar in the Middle East," he said.
Bangladesh has also been seeking to boost its maritime industry by improving bunkering at Chittagong and Mongla ports.
