The government is set to purchase various equipment for Mongla port, Bangladesh's second-largest seaport, from China under a government-to-government arrangement for Tk 4,046 crore.

The initiative was approved by the advisory committee on purchase yesterday.

According to a Cabinet Division statement, the items will be directly purchased from the state-owned enterprise China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC).

The purchase will be made under a Tk 4,068.23 crore project, which was approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council on February 2 this year, for the expansion and modernisation of Mongla port.

Of the project cost, Tk 475.33 crore will be borne by the government of Bangladesh, while the remaining Tk 3,592.90 crore will be sourced as a loan from China.

During the project's initiation, Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud stated that its main objective was to expand facilities at Mongla port by enhancing its container handling capacity, reports news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha.

Mongla port, situated around 225 kilometres southwest of the capital Dhaka, is very important in the context of geopolitics, and the government wants to turn it into a regional hub, he added.

The project includes the construction of two container jetties, an 87,600-square-metre yard for containers bearing goods, a 34,170-square-metre yard for empty containers, and a 4,260-square-metre yard for handling hazardous cargo, the statement reads.

The advisory committee on purchase also approved the procurement of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from the international spot market at a cost of Tk 664.40 crore.

The consignment will be delivered by US-based Excelerate Energy at $14.30 per million British thermal units (mmBtu).