Dubai-based port operator DP World has proposed not only the New Container Terminal (NCT) but also the adjacent Chittagong Container Terminal (CCT) at Chittagong Port be modernised and operated together as a single integrated terminal. The company argued that, given the side-by-side layout, merging the two facilities into one operational unit would deliver scale and efficiency.
The interest was conveyed at the fourth meeting of the Bangladesh-Dubai Public-Private Partnership (PPP) platform held in Dubai on 8 April. According to the meeting minutes, the proposal will be considered as a separate project at the next meeting. On 9 February, the then-interim government had suspended the NCT leasing process amid labor protests; with the process now restarting, the operator has tabled a larger-scale investment plan.
During the Awami League government, after the Patenga Container Terminal was handed to a foreign operator in 2024, talks began on a 15-year NCT lease. DP World had already shown interest in CCT then, but port officials excluded the terminal from the process. Earlier, on 24 March 2025, Bangladesh-based MGH Group proposed investing USD 250-300 million to operate CCT under a long-term PPP, though port sources said the bid was not pursued in isolation.
According to the meeting minutes, DP World also signaled investment interest in the Bay Container Terminal, Dhirashram Inland Container Depot (ICD) and a digital single window system. The operator specifically proposed joint work to digitise port operations and modernise the logistics system, and expressed interest in the Nimtola depot as well.
Four officials from Bangladesh, including PPP Authority CEO Ashik Chowdhury, attended the Dubai meeting. The Dubai side included Nasser Abdullah Al Neyadi and Yuvraj Narayan. Shipping Minister Sheikh Robiul Alam said on 19 February that the government would prioritise national and public interest in any NCT decision. Treating the proposal as a separate project in the next PPP session would mark a pivotal step toward consolidating Bangladesh's container export chain at the port.
Key Takeaways:
1. DP World seeks to operate Chittagong's CCT alongside NCT, proposing a single integrated terminal under one operator.
2. The proposal was made at the fourth Bangladesh-Dubai PPP meeting in Dubai on 8 April and will be reviewed as a separate project at the next session.
3. The NCT leasing process, suspended on 9 February amid labor protests, has restarted with DP World tabling a larger investment plan.
4. Bangladesh-based MGH Group had earlier offered USD 250-300 million for CCT under a long-term PPP, but the bid was not advanced in isolation.
5. DP World also signaled interest in the Bay Container Terminal, Dhirashram ICD, a digital single window system, and the Nimtola depot.
