The past Awami League government had ambitious plans to establish Payra in Patuakhali as one of the main gateways to the sea. It was said that Payra would be developed into a logistics hub for the country. To achieve this, the government proposed the construction of a deep-sea port, a coal-based power plant, and an LNG terminal, along with other development projects. However, in 2021, the government abandoned the plan to turn Payra into a deep-sea port due to insufficient depth. Experts say that Payra could have been a dock rather than a full-fledged sea or river port. After such massive investments, it is now impossible to back out of the project, which is why planning adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud has called the Payra port project a wound to the economy.
Deep-sea ports around the world accommodate ships with a draft of at least 18 meters. Over time, many ports have shifted to handling ships with a draft of 25 meters. However, none of Bangladesh’s ports have the necessary depth to accommodate such ships. The deepest port in the region is Singapore, with a depth of 24.5 meters, a far cry from what Payra has.
The Payra river port is located in Patuakhali’s Kalapara Upazila, where large amounts of silt from upstream flow in each year. It was anticipated that without regular dredging, it would be difficult to maintain the port. However, the previous Awami government claimed that the port’s income would cover the expensive dredging and other maintenance costs. Despite a severe dollar shortage at the time, the government broke into reserves to fund the dredging of the Rabnabad Channel at Payra Port.
Formal cargo handling began at Payra Port in August 2016. To accommodate larger ships, the port authority entered into a contract with the Belgian-based contractor Jan De Nul NV in early 2019 for capital and maintenance dredging of the Rabnabad Channel. The estimated cost was BDT 495 billion. The dredging work aimed to create a 75-kilometer-long channel with a depth of 10.5 meters, which would allow 40,000-ton ships to use the Payra Port. The capital dredging work has already been completed.
Last year, the depth of the Rabnabad Channel was increased to 10.5 meters to allow larger ships to navigate the port and the coal-based power plant’s jetty. Experts say that at least 8.7 meters of depth is needed for large ships to pass through. However, due to tidal variations, the channel’s depth has now dropped to 5.9 to 6.5 meters. Even last month, the maximum depth of the channel was just 6.9 meters.
According to sources from the Payra Port Authority, a project for dredging and maintaining the Rabnabad Channel was implemented from April 2021 to April 2024, costing a total of BDT 65.35 billion. Of this, BDT 55.5 billion was spent on dredging and maintenance work. Although the project was supposed to finish in April last year, emergency work continued until August. Since then, dredging work has been completely halted.
In addition, another project for constructing the port’s first terminal was initiated in 2019 at a cost of BDT 39.82 billion. However, it was not completed by 2021, and the deadline was extended to 2026. The project’s cost has now increased to BDT 54.27 billion, with an additional BDT 9.11 billion approved at the recent ECNEC meeting on Sunday (March 23).
Planning adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud commented on the project, stating, “About 72 percent of the project is complete, so it can’t be abandoned now. But, we shouldn’t have started it in the first place. Large ships can’t dock here. It’s not even a sea port; it could have just been a dock at best.”
He further explained that the project could not be stopped now due to the power plant on-site. “While setting up the power plant, part of the Sundarbans was damaged. Now, we also need to build the yard, jetty, and connecting roads. This cycle will continue, with expensive dredging machines being purchased. Dredging will need to be done year-round. There is no good solution right now. It’s like a cancer for the economy. After investing so much in the power plant, we can’t just shut it down,” he added.
Located on the banks of the Payra River in Patuakhali’s Kalapara Upazila, three coal-based power plants are situated along the river. These plants use ultra-supercritical technology, with one already in production, another waiting to begin, and a third still under construction.
Concerns have already arisen over the channel’s depth, both from the port authority and the coal-based power plants under construction at Payra. Officials from these establishments have expressed that without the ability to accommodate large ships, the port will never be commercially viable. There are also concerns about the future of the coal plants along Payra’s banks. If large ships cannot deliver coal directly, it will need to be transported by lighter vessels, increasing costs. These higher costs will likely affect electricity prices as well.