Shipping ministry is set to place a proposal before cabinet committee on public purchase today to procure a crude oil carrying lighterage vessel. The present two vessels are 27-year old and will not be allowed in the international maritime area after the end of 2015.
According to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) provision, the single hull based two oil lighterage vessels - MT Banglar Jyoti and MT Banglar Shourabh will no longer be allowed to operate in international maritime area from end of this year.
IMO said the vessels are 27-year old and need to be replaced. It said only the double hull based vessel would be allowed in the international maritime area after the end of this year.
A shipping ministry official said the Turkey’s Camlica Shipping would supply a 12 year-old crude oil carrying lighterage vessel in a few months as per condition tagged with tender.
A total of five local and foreign companies participated in the tender.
Turkey’s Camlica Shipping’s local agent M/S Afroz Shipping and M/S Overseas Marketing Corporation passed the technical evaluation of tender process, the official said.
Camlica Shipping scored the highest point and agreed to supply MT PULI lighterage vessel with a capacity of 15,857 MT DWT. The vessels will be procured at a cost of Tk156.11 crore.
In January the cabinet committee on public procurement approved in principle the procurement of six vessels for BSC with funding from Chinese Exim Bank - one of a number of investment undertakings China pursuing.
Presently, the corporation has 13 ships. Of them, one is container ship, 10 are product carriers and two are lighter tankers. A BSC official said the average age of the ships is 28 years, which need to be replaced very soon.
Established in 1972, the BSC is entrusted with the responsibility of carrying bulk cargo, food-grains and crude oil, chartering, tramping and feeder services, unloading and providing agency service and ship repairing.