HR Lines Limited, a subsidiary of Karnaphuli Group, is set to launch the country's first flagged feeder vessels on Bangladesh-Singapore-Malaysia route in the first week of April.
They will save time and ease the country's export-import activities with Singapore and Malaysia, which will finally link Bangladesh to North America and European markets, an HR Lines official said.
The new freight service, 'Bangladesh Express Service (BES)', will transport around 10,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers per month.
It offers a fixed day of the week feeder service for exporters and importers.
Talking to the FE, Karnaphuli Limited Group Director Hamdan Hossain Chowdhury said, "The maiden sailing of BES vessels from Chattogram is due for April 05."
They will leave Chattogram every Monday to reach Singapore on Friday, allowing exporters and importers to catch North America and Europe-bound mother vessels.
The vessels usually sail for respective destinations from Singapore on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, Mr Chowdhury said. "HR Lines will commission its two 1,550-TEU container ships named 'Sahare' and 'Sarera' on this route at Chattogram port," added the shipping line's director. HR Lines procured the two ships from Pacific International Lines (PIL) of Singapore.
The service will also reduce transit time significantly as the vessels registered in Bangladesh get extra benefit in berthing at Chattogram port as per the Bangladesh Flag Vessel (Protection) Act-2019. Mr Chowdhury said, "The BES vessels won't have to wait in queue for berthing with the foreign-flagged ones due to legal preferences which will shorten transit time at Chattogram port."
There are some 87 feeder vessels, all hoisting foreign flags, in operation between Bangladesh- Singapore and Bangladesh-Colombo routes. Some 200,000 containers are transported between Bangladesh and Singapore route every month costing the country's exporters and importers $80 million.
Besides, Mr Chowdhury said the new vessels will also employ only Bangladeshi nationals to fulfil the condition of becoming Bangladesh flag vessels. Advance Container Lines (ACL), one of the top feeder operators in South-East Asia, is the commercial manager for BES.
