Shipbuilders may change Bangladesh economy

Industries Minister Dilip Barua said yesterday shipbuilding, which is a very labour-intensive industry, has the potential for generating a huge foreign currency and developing extraordinary skills in the field of engineering.

"The country has skilled and semi-skilled professionals as well as necessary ingredients to be a shipbuilding nation. So the industry holds the potential for transforming Bangladesh into a middle-income country in near future," Barua said.

He was speaking as chief guest at a function organised by Ananda Shipyard and Slipways Ltd, one of the leading local shipbuilders, as it formally handed over its eighth ship, Stella Moon, at $7.5 million to a Danish buyer, Stella Shipping P/S.

The function took place at the company's office at Meghnaghat in Sonargaon under Narayanganj district.

"The company has so far secured export orders for 34 ships at $373.50 million. It has received export proceeds and advance payments of $48.54 million. Denmark, Germany, Norway and Mozambique have placed the orders," said Ananda Group Chairman Dr Abdullahel Bari at the ceremony.

Earlier Ananda exported its first ship Stella Maris to another Danish company at $6 million on May 5 last year and six others to the Mozambique government at $6.2 million on November 13, said the company officials.

The officials also said they are now building 10 ships of which six have been ordered by Komorowski and four others by Wessell, two German companies.

"We hope to deliver the ships within the next three years as the construction works are going on in full swing," said a company official.

Stella Moon has 64 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) container carrying capacity with 2,950 deadweight tonnages.

Deadweight tonnage, also known as deadweight (DWT), is a measure of how much mass or weight of cargo or burden a ship can carry safely.

Abdullah-al Kaiser Hasnat, a lawmaker from Narayanganj-3 constituency, Einar H Jensen, Danish ambassador, Bea M ten Tusscher, ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Bangladesh, Hassan Farazandeh, ambassador of Iran, Afruja Bari, managing director of the company, and Abu Nasser Muhammad Abduz Zaher, chairman of Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd, among others, were present at the function.