A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) said it is expanding its footprint in Bangladesh with a bonded warehouse at Chattogram, a large port city on the southeastern coast of the country.

Maersk said it is strengthening its operations in Bangladesh while noting that the country has been one of the most important sourcing markets for the garments and apparel industry worldwide — with garment manufacturers exporting to global markets have significantly contributed towards building the country's economy.

"Despite the impressive growth of garments' exports from Bangladesh, the number of warehouses in Chattogram have not increased since 2012 with the sole exception of ISATL that became operational in 2018," Maersk said.

"Optimizing utilization of available capacity assisted to an extent, however it did not scale enough to meet the trade’s requirements."

The shipping line added that the logistics ecosystem and the Chittagong Port get stretched, particularly during the peak seasons.

"In 2021, a fallout of this structural challenge was felt by all the stakeholders involved in import-export trade when the Container Freight Stations (CFS) got clogged with cargo resulting in delayed clearance, stuffing and consequently dispatch of containers to the port," Maersk said.

"These challenges have serious consequences on the overall economy of the country given the fact that the Chittagong Port handles in excess of 90% of the total containerized trade to and from Bangladesh."

Doubling capacity at Chattogram

Recognizing these challenges, Maersk said it partnered with ISATL — which builds and operates warehouses  — for the construction to build a 200,000 sq. ft custom bonded warehouse.

Under the scope of this partnership, ISATL will construct a brand new custom bonded warehouse within the existing premises of the facility located at Pathortoli in Chattogram.

"The new warehouse will double the existing capacity at ISATL and add around 8% additional space to the existing ecosystem at Chattogram," Maersk said, adding that the construction of the new CFS has already commenced and is expected to be completed in a phased manner by the end of 2022.

It said Bangladesh's exporters and their overseas buyers will be able to start using the facility from July 2022, once the first phase of construction is completed.

"There was a need for a comprehensive solution to optimise ocean shipping, port handling and inland logistics that would benefit trade in the long term. By partnering with ISATL, we are establishing a facility that has the potential to partially decongest the system from the landside and streamline the flow of cargo in and out of Bangladesh," commented Angshuman Mustafi, managing director, Maersk Bangladesh.