Cox’s Bazar-Matarbari road becomes country's most expensive

The roads and highways department (RHD) is constructing a 27.2-kilometre-long road to connect the Matarbari deep seaport with Cox’s Bazar, with an estimated cost of Tk 129.42 billion. It translates to a per-kilometre cost of Tk Tk 4.76 billion, making it the most expensive road in the country.

The project has been undertaken to connect the under-construction deep seaport in Matarbari of Maheshkhali with the Cox’s Bazar highway. It includes a two-lane road for 26 kilometres, while the remaining portion adjacent to the port is four-lane. Some bridges, culverts, and land acquisition expenses are also included in the budget.

At a seminar in Dhaka on 25 February, road transport adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan raised questions regarding the high infrastructure development costs in Bangladesh. He shared that he had to approve a foreign-funded road construction project with an estimated per-kilometre cost of Tk 4.37 billion.

“Will this road be plated with gold or diamonds?”, he asked in utter surprise.

According to ministry sources, the adviser referred to the link road to Matarbari seaport. Excluding salaries and allowances of the project officials, the cost per kilometre still stands at Tk 4.37 billion. The figure is more than twice of the country’s most expensive Dhaka-Bhanga expressway, where per kilometre cost was Tk 2.01 billion.

The cost of the Matarbari link road is 236 per cent higher than that of the Dhaka-Bhanga expressway. Individuals associated with the construction project said the cost may go up due to hike in prices of construction materials as well as the high exchange rate, but such a large hike is unacceptable.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is funding the Matarbari port and link road project, which is being implemented in three packages. Japanese firms have been awarded contracts for two packages, while the process of appointing contractors is underway for the remaining one.

Due to loan conditions, contractors from other countries do not feel comfortable in such projects. Hence, both main contractors and design consultants of the road construction project are from Japan.

The authorities invited tenders in 2022, and appointed contractors in February 2025. According to sources, an assessment committee suggested reissuing the tender due to the high project cost.

However, the JICA objected to the proposal, arguing that a new tender only for selecting the lowest bidder or reducing the project cost does not align with their procurement policy. They rather suggested price negotiations with the contractors.

As per their suggestion, the authorities decided to invite tenders for a package and to renegotiate the cost for the two others. Following multiple phases of negotiation with Tokyo Construction, the cost has been reduced by Tk 2.67 billion to Tk 67.87 billion, which is still nearly 40 per cent higher than the estimated cost.

With technical and financial assistance from Japan, a 1,200 MW coal-fired power plant has been constructed at Matarbari, at a cost of Tk 519.84 billion. The plant requires a wide channel and port to import fuel. And, the road construction project has been undertaken to link the port with the highway.

It is also intended for increasing cargo handling capacity of the port, reducing pressure from the Chattogram port, and meeting international demands in the long run.

Under the shipping ministry, the Matarbari port development project was undertaken in March 2020, with an estimated cost of Tk 177.77 billion. After two phases of revision, the cost increased to Tk 243.81 billion. The latest cost adjustment was approved by the interim government in October last year.

There are two parts in the project – a deep-sea port which is being implemented by the Chittagong Port Authority, and a 27.2-kilometer link road which is being constructed by the RHD.

The initial cost for the RHD part was estimated at Tk 88.21 billion, and it rose to Tk 129.42 billion after two revisions. The project includes a two-lane road, 14 bridges of different sizes, a railway overpass, and 45 culverts. It was initially scheduled to be completed by 2026, but the deadline has now been extended to 2029. A total of 356 acres of land is being acquired for the project.

An international tender was floated for the link road in July 2022. Among the three project packages, two companies submitted bids for CW-3A, three for CW-3B, and five for CW-3C package. In all cases, the main bidders were from Japan, while Bangladeshi contractors participated as supporting entities.

According to the RHD sources, the estimated cost of contractor appointments for the three packages was Tk 73.82 billion, but the combined bid submitted by Japanese contractors totaled Tk 115 billion.

As all three bids exceeded the estimated costs, the assessment committee recommended re-tendering, but the JICA opposed it. Later, it was decided to reissue the tender for only one package (CW-3A) while renegotiating the remaining two.

After multiple rounds of discussions, the cost was reduced by Tk 2.67 billion, bringing the total cost down to Tk 67.87 billion. Despite the reduction, the cost remains around 40 per cent higher than the original estimate.

In this regard, RHD chief engineer Syed Moinul Hasan told Prothom Alo that soil development requires higher cost as soil in the project area is not ideal. Besides, the Japanese consultants and contractors consider different risks, which pull up the cost eventually.

He further said the government determines the terms and processes for projects with foreign loans. As the implementing authority, they made every effort to minimise expenses.

Shamsul Haque, a transport expert and professor of civil engineering department at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), said there was lack of competition in the tender process. Otherwise, there should be a re-tender if the cost difference becomes more than 15 per cent.

He laid emphasis on assessing benefits since Bangladesh is taking the money in loans and is obliged to repay with interest.