Chittagong port work stoppage: Export goods worth Tk 80b stuck

Chittagong Port exports 2,000 to 2,500 containers of goods daily under normal conditions. However, on the second consecutive day of the ongoing work stoppage, not a single container of goods was exported from the port on Wednesday. Exports came to a halt as no ships were able to leave the port jetties due to obstructions by the protesters.

Because exports have remained suspended due to the continuous work abstention, around 13,000 container units of export goods are now stuck at the port yard, on 10 ships berthed at the jetties, and at private depots. The estimated value of the goods inside these containers is about USD 660 million, or approximately Tk 80 billion.

The work stoppage is being observed under the banner of the Chattogram Bandar Rokkha Sangram Parishad, protesting the decision to lease the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) to UAE-based port operator DP World.

After observing work stoppages for three days at eight hours each starting last Saturday, the protesters began an indefinite work stoppage from Tuesday. As a result, port operations have completely come to a standstill.

According to last fiscal year’s data, 91 per cent of the country’s total exports were routed through Chittagong port. Yet despite port operations being disrupted for five consecutive days, there has been no visible initiative from any government agency to resolve the deadlock. This has raised serious concerns about major losses in the export sector.

When contacted, Mohammad Shihab Uddoza Chowdhury, vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), told Prothom Alo that the readymade garment industry is the worst affected whenever Chittagong port operations are halted. This is because the bulk of imports and exports are related to the garment sector.

He further said that if garments are not exported within the scheduled time, foreign buyers may demand price discounts or even cancel purchase orders. News of the shutdown at Chittagong port has already spread among foreign buyers, causing them to become concerned.

According to the BGMEA vice-president, the closure of port operations would delay the arrival of raw materials, negatively affecting the entire supply chain. As a result, less time would be available for garment production. If garments cannot be exported on time for any reason, garment factory owners will face financial losses.

The Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) vessel MSC Polo-2 arrived at the port jetty on 31 January carrying import containers. The ship was scheduled to leave the jetty on 2 February for Singapore with 749 containers units of export goods. However, due to the movement, the vessel is still stuck at the jetty.

An MSC official told Prothom Alo that these containers were scheduled to be unloaded in Singapore and then loaded onto larger vessels bound for Europe and the Americas. As the ship has been unable to depart even after three days, the entire shipping schedule has collapsed. Consequently, goods are not reaching foreign buyers on time.

Another vessel of the same company, MSC Jena, carrying 1,329 container units, has been waiting at sea since 2 February. A large portion of these containers contain raw materials for the garment industry. Because ships at the jetty are unable to depart, new ships cannot be berthed, increasing the risk of production disruptions in export-oriented industries.

As of Wednesday, nine ships carrying import containers had arrived at the outer anchorage. Today, Thursday, another nine ships are expected to reach the port’s maritime boundary. This means that if the deadlock is not resolved, within the next day 18 ships will be stranded at sea and 10 ships will remain stuck at the jetties.

This situation has arisen because operations at the port’s three main terminals, the General Cargo Berth (GCB), Chittagong Container Terminal (CCT), and New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT), have been completely shut down since Tuesday due to obstructions by protesters.

Although one ship departed from the ‘RSGT Chittagong’ terminal in Patenga on Tuesday, a ship scheduled to berth there yesterday could not do so. As a result, there are currently no ships at that terminal.

According to the Container Depot Association, before the movement began, around 8,000 container units of export goods were waiting for shipment at 19 private depots. By 8:00 am on Wednesday, that number had risen to 10,817, and by the afternoon it exceeded 11,000. Including containers at the port and on ships, the total number of stuck export containers now stands at around 13,000.

Ruhul Amin, secretary general of the Container Depot Association, told Prothom Alo, “Every day, export goods from export-oriented factories across the country are arriving at the depots in covered vans. At present, more than 3,500 covered vans loaded with export goods are at the depots. These goods are being stuffed into containers. However, since port operations are not normal, these containers cannot be transported to the port and loaded onto ships for export. As a result, the number of export containers is increasing day by day.”

According to data from the National Board of Revenue (NBR), during the 2024–25 fiscal year, 831,270 container units of export goods were transported through Chittagong port. During the same period, the total value of these goods was USD 42.32 billion. This means that, on average, each container carried export goods worth approximately USD 51,000.

Based on this calculation, the value of export goods in the currently stuck 13,000 containers stands at around USD 660 million, or approximately Tk 80 billion.

On one hand, the process of leasing out the NCT has reached its final stage, while on the other, workers and employees are continuing their indefinite work stoppage. Despite severe disruption to import and export activities, no initiative to resolve the crisis has been observed from the government. Instead, repeated orders transferring employees have further intensified the movement.

Ibrahim Khokon, coordinator of the Chattogram Bandar Rokkha Sangram Parishad, told Prothom Alo, “This movement is aimed at forcing the government to step back from the decision to lease out the NCT. Workers and employees are participating spontaneously. However, since there has been no initiative to resolve the issue or accept the demands, the programme will continue.”