Bangladesh Newsflash

Transcription

1 Bangladesh Newsflash Edition 78, March 2018 Newsflash Bangladesh is a publication by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Dhaka. The newsflash provides an update in terms of economic developments, the most important tenders and a selection of other relevant business news related to Bangladesh. This newsflash is shared with a distinctive group of Dutch businesses with special interests in Bangladesh. It is put together on the basis of publicly available information from various sources such as news articles, press releases, and third party information. The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Dhaka is not responsible for the accuracy of the published information. If you do not wish to receive the Newsflash Bangladesh, or would like to add a person to the distribution list, or if you would like to give us your comments; please feel free to send a message to dha-ea@minbuza.nl. For further practical economic information about Bangladesh, please refer to the Netherlands Bangladesh Business Platform developed by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh in collaboration with Dutch Business University Nyenrode for the Dutch-Bangladeshi business community. The platform bundles information on all that is relevant for doing business in Bangladesh, providing targeted sector analysis, insights into risks and opportunities of doing business, including concrete advice on good business practices, an overview of the most relevant government policies for intending investors and much more. Highlights Bangladesh has the most green RMG factories in the world. 67 Eco-friendly green (LEED) factories have been established. The government has launched a mobile application (Labour Inspection Management Application or LIMA) to ensure quality labour management in the industrial sector. Summit Power International and Mitsubishi Corporation have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop an LNG-to-power project. Netherlands government has provided a further US$ 0.8 million to support a rice fortification scaleup programme in Bangladesh. LG's local partner Butterfly has shelled out $100 million to set up a plant in Bhaluka to make LED TV locally. Bangladesh has become eligible to graduate from the LDC-category to become a developing country meeting all the three graduation criteria for the first time. Bangladesh's leading electronics manufacturer Walton has teamed up with a Nigerian company to export laptops. ipay Systems Limited, a digital money transfer platform, has launched its commercial operation aiming to make transactions more transparent and secure in Bangladesh. The World Bank has approved $560 million for two projects to make the supply of power more reliable and the microenterprises environmentally sustainable. 1 Newsflash March 2018

2 Political update A new Joint Response Plan to address the Rohingya humanitarian crisis was launched on 16th March in Geneva. As per the plan, US$951 million is requested for the period between March to December 2018 to provide life-saving assistance to 1.3 million people. The plan includes support for the Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar to Bangladesh and local host communities. A court in Comilla set 8th of April as the date for hearing on the bail petition that was filed by Khaleda Zia regarding a case of arson attack. On 29th March, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia had fallen sick in the old Dhaka Central Jail. A medical team consisting of four members visited Khaleda Zia and examined her health condition. As per report her condition is not serious. Textile and Ready Made Garments (RMG) Bangladesh has the most green RMG factories (Dhaka Tribune) Bangladesh s RMG sector, a $28 billion industry, has taken the lead in green manufacturing as it has established 67 eco-friendly green buildings, the highest number in the world. Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) in association with USGBC and GBCI launched LEED Green Factory Award in recognition and celebration of Bangladesh s RMG sector s strides in green industrialization. A total of 13 best green building factories of Bangladesh were honored with LEED Green Factory Award to recognize their efforts in sustainability by achieving LEED Platinum certification. Bangladesh, the second largest ready-made garment exporter in the world, has taken a leading position in sustainable green industrialization with the world s several top ranked Green factories. According to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Bangladesh s RMG sector now has 67 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green factories. Among them 13 are LEED Platinum rated while more than 280 factories are registered with USGBC for LEED certification. Department of Inspections for Factories and Establishments or DIFE, to be used during inspections. LIMA is set to make DIFE's operations more effective by combining its key data gathering and management needs in one platform. It will also enhance data accessibility and transparency by making certain information available to employers and workers while facilitating day-to-day tasks such as factory license applications or the submission of complaints. Apparel exports to new markets on the rise (The Daily Star) Garment exports to non-traditional markets rose 3.77 percent year-on-year to $2.56 billion in the July-January period of the current fiscal year thanks to preferential trade benefit and fiscal incentive. Apparel shipments fetched $2.47 billion in the same period last fiscal year, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau. India, China, Russia, Japan, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, South Korea, Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand are among the major non-traditional markets for the garment sector. Shipments to the emerging markets are rising on the back of zeroduty benefit granted to Bangladesh, opening of retail stores by global brands, market diversification by local exporters, and the government's fiscal incentives. Bangladesh receives the zero-duty benefit to markets such as Japan, India, and China. As a result, shipments to the markets are rising at a App launched for better labour management (The Daily Star) The government launched a mobile application to ensure quality labour management in the industrial sector. The Labour Inspection Management Application or LIMA will improve the collection, storage and analysis of labour inspection data. The development of LIMA has been supported by the International Labour Organisation's Improving Working Conditions in the Ready-Made Garment Sector programme funded by Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Around 250 android tablets were also handed over to the faster rate. 2 Newsflash March 2018

3 BGMEA to get 500 acres of land in Mirsarai EZ for RMG park (New Age) Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority will allot 500 acres of land to Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association for setting up a well-planned readymade garment factory park in the Mirsarai Economic Zone of Chittagong. The BEZA and the BGMEA signed a memorandum of understanding in this connection. BGMEA sought the land from the BEZA for relocating the factories haphazardly established at different places mainly in Dhaka and setting up green factories having international standards. BEZA officials said that they agreed to allocate the land to the BGMEA as the association promised to invest $2 billion for setting up RMG and garment accessories factories at the proposed garment park for generating employment for 5 lakh people. Infrastructure Government of Bangladesh and German KfW sign $40m climate financing deal (The Financial Express) A financing agreement involving US$ 40 million was signed between Bangladesh and KfW Development Bank of Germany to support implementation of the 'Climate Resilient Infrastructure Mainstreaming (CRIM)' project in Bangladesh. Out of the total project cost of $82.75 million, a grant element of $40 million has been approved by the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The German Federal Government provides parallel co-financing of $15 million through KfW, while the government of Bangladesh will provide $27.75 million as part of supporting the initiative in areas of climate change adaptation. The purpose of CRIM project is to construct and renovate cyclone shelters and critical access road to protect lives in a rural coastal region of Bangladesh; developing urban infrastructure and safeguarding vulnerable city-dwellers from climate risk; and also to establish a national "Centre of Excellence for Climate Resilience Infrastructure" to inform and guide future infrastructure development throughout the country. The Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) under the Local Government Division (LGD) will implement the project. The implementation period of the project is six years. Padma Rail Link - Government panel gives nod to $2.6b Chinese loan (The Daily Star) The hard-term loan committee of the government approved $2.6 billion financing for the Padma rail link project. A meeting of the committee was held at the Economic Relations Division (ERD) with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in the chair. Chinese Exim Bank will provide the loan at an interest rate of 2 percent with a repayment period of 20 years, including a six-year grace period. The Chinese State Council, the highest policymaking body of the East Asian nation, last month gave consent for providing the loan to the project. Of the 26 projects committed by China, the rail link is the most pressing one, receiving the highest amount of loan. Japan pledges $1.83b more for development projects (The Financial Express) Japan has offered some US$1.83 billion in assistance for bankrolling Bangladesh's six major development projects on communications infrastructures, power and ports. Ministry of Finance (MoF) officials said Japanese Ambassador in Bangladesh Mr Hiroyasu Izumi met Economic Relations Division (ERD) secretary Kazi Shofiqul Azam in Dhaka and pledged the development assistance. A senior MoF official said a deal on the $1.83-billion loan under the 39th Official Development Assistance (ODA) package is expected to be signed by June this year. Bangladesh's largest bilateral donor, Japan in the last 38th ODA package had provided Yen billion ($1.64 billion) for utilising in six development projects in transport infrastructure, power and water-sectorimprovement works. Karnaphuli tunnel work set to begin in September (New Age) The much-awaited construction of multilane road tunnel under the River Karnaphuli is set to begin in September. As the Chinese Exim Bank disbursed its fund of Tk 1,108 crore in December 2017, there was no other bar to starting the construction work of Karnaphuli tunnel. The tunnel is at the estuary of the river and it will connect the port city with the proposed deep-sea port and Cox s Bazar. The feasibility study and acquisition of 1,100 acres of land for the tunnel has been completed. At present the installation of consultancy firm s office, 3 Newsflash March 2018

4 power substation, site camp, construction yard, land acquisition and sand filling is going on. The multilane tunnel route will pass through the river close to Navy College on one side and Korean Export Processing Zone and Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company on the other. Oil, Gas & Energy Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant: Bangladesh, India, Russia sign MoU (The Financial Express) Bangladesh, India and Russia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation on implementing the Rooppur nuclear power plant. The deal was signed in Moscow between Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom), science and technology ministry of Bangladesh and the Department of Atomic Energy of India. Under the deal, Indian companies can be involved in construction and installation works, supply of materials and equipment of a noncritical category in the interests of the project. This is the first instance of a third country (India) being involved in the construction of the Rooppur power plant in Bangladesh for which the first agreement was signed between Bangladesh and Russia in November Construction of the Rooppur nuclear power plant will consist of two power units with a capacity of 1,200 MW each. The two units is planned to be commissioned in 2023 and Summit signs MoU with Mitsubishi for integrated LNG terminal, power project in Bangladesh (Dhaka Tribune) Summit Power International (SPI) and Mitsubishi Corporation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop an LNG-topower project, which is expected to cost up to US$3 billion, in Matarbari, Bangladesh. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Singapore s Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade) Lim Hng Kiang witnessed the signing of the MoU at the Bangladesh-Singapore Business Forum Under the MoU, the parties agreed to develop an integrated liquefied natural gas (LNG) on shore receiving terminal with a regasification capacity of up to 1,500 million cubic feet per day, two units of 1,200 megawatt gas turbine combined cycle power projects (total of 2,400 MW), relevant high voltage transmission lines and the import of LNG. This MoU will help SPI support Bangladesh s fast-growing energy, power and technology needs. It will be a strategic fit for SPI to leverage Mitsubishi s LNG, and LNGto-Power expertise as well as understanding of Moheskhali and Bangladesh s power needs. The two groups are well-positioned to uniquely benefit from opportunities arising from the Bangladesh Government s move to raise LNG imports to meet the country s domestic natural gas shortfall and expand the country s power generation capacity. Government approves 162MW power plant project (The Daily Star) Bangladesh and China are going to set up a 162-megawatt furnace oil-based power plant under private investment as per the former's policy. The cabinet committee on purchase approved the plant. The government will buy electricity from the plant at Tk or dollar cents per kilowatt hour. It will be run under the built-own-operate basis for 15 years. The consortium, comprising Changzhou HuTang Coal Power Co Ltd of China and Icon Enterprise Ltd and Chase Power Ltd of Bangladesh will set up the plant at Singair in Manikganj. According to a Power Division proposal, the government will have to spend more than Tk 14,000 crore in 15 years for buying electricity from the consortium. The entity will purchase land, set up transmission lines and a sub-station with its own money, said the proposal. The cabinet committee also extended the tenure of two existing power purchase deals. Water/Maritime First mother vessel reaches Chittagong port from Korea (The Daily Star) A new way for container transport was introduced from Korea to Chittagong port on Friday, which would help traders to cut the travel time by a half. For the first time, a mother vessel carried containers from Korea to the Bangladeshi port in 14 days. It used to take around 30 days, as the containers had to wait in Singapore port to be unloaded and to reach Chittagong 4 Newsflash March 2018

5 through feeder vessels. In its maiden voyage, the mother vessel Sentosa Trader of Hyundai Merchant Marine Company Ltd set sail from Korea's Bussan port. The vessel touched Ningbo and Shanghai ports of China and reach Singapore port in 10 days. The vessel came from Korea with 783 containers. It was a longtime demand of the port users to introduce this type of container transport, which would save time for both the importers and the exporters. China to export largest tunneling machine to Bangladesh (The Financial Express) TIANHE: China's largest self-developed tunneling machine will be exported to Bangladesh to assist with a river tunneling project, breaking the export monopoly of ultra-large tunneling equipment once held by developed countries. The machine, with a diameter of meters and length of 94 meters, weighs 2,200 tons. It will be used for opening a 3,500-meter road tunnel under Karnaphuli River, China's largest project of its kind overseas. The project is important in the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and a key component of the Bangladesh- China-India-Myanmar economic corridor. It is believed to play a significant role in improving the Asian highway network and boosting connectivity between Bangladesh and its neighboring countries. The export of the machine produced by Tianhe Mechanical Equipment Manufacturing Co., Ltd based in east China's Jiangsu province will break the monopoly of ultra-large tunneling equipment by developed countries in the exports. Indo-Bangladesh water transit encompasses Pangaon Port (The Financial Express) Bangladesh is likely to give its consent to India's proposal to take Pangaon terminal near Dhaka in the bilateral Inland Water Transit and Trade Protocol. The issue may be finalised at the upcoming secretary-level talks to be held in Delhi next month. Located 20 kms off Dhaka metropolitan area in Keraniganj Upazila in Dhaka district, the Pangaon terminal is an inland port and container terminal on the Buriganga river. It was opened in 2013, with the prime objective of country's trade shipment through the alternative route to leapfrog Dhaka-Chittagong highway congestion. The meeting will also discuss Standard Operating Procedures (SoP) of the inland water protocol. India plans to connect its National Waterway one (NW -1) with its north-eastern states through Indo-Bangla protocol route. It will reduce the distance from about 1,700 kms via Siliguri in North Bengal to about 500 kms via Bangladesh. Agriculture/Fisheries Bangladesh s homegrown line up of agromachineries adds to progress (Dhaka Tribune) The agro machineries produced in Bangladesh can be divided into several categories such as ploughing machines, seeding plantation machines, irrigation machines, fertilizer and insecticides applying machineries, harvesting machineries, threshers, and post harvesting machinery. The country s local entrepreneurs provide percent of the products. The local entrepreneurs mostly import the machinery parts from China, Japan, Korea and other countries and assemble them locally. Although they are producing almost all kind of machineries except diesel engine and certain number of high technological machines. The local entrepreneurs claim that the quality of their products were better than Chinese products while a number of products were being exported aboard. Md Nurul Islam, the general secretary of Bangladesh Agricultural Machinery Merchant Association (BAMMA), said: The quality of home grown products is often better than the Chinese machineries. But due to lack of resources and high technological support, the cost of our products is higher than the foreign products. However, the local entrepreneurs have to face uneven competition against the foreign products in the market due to high duty on imported machinery parts, he said, adding that the duty on machinery parts should be withdrawn. The government started farm mechanization with 30% subsidy which had been currently increased to 50% while the subsidy for Haor region was 70%. Bangladesh has started 5 Newsflash March 2018

6 cultivating through modern system and mechanized the country s agriculture. Land cultivation, harvesting, separating crops all of these can be done with machines and new technologies are being introduced from around the world. The new agricultural machines are Ploughing Machine, Seeding Plantation Machineries, Irrigation Machineries, Fertilizer and Insecticides Applying Machineries, Harvesting Machineries and Threshing Machineries. US $0.8m Dutch support for rice fortification in Bangladesh (The Financial Express) Netherlands government has provided a further US$ 0.8 million to support a rice fortification scale-up programme in Bangladesh. The money will be spent to scale up an initiative on rice fortification which is being implemented by WFP in collaboration with the Ministry of Food, the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and other partners. In 2017, the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs distributed fortified rice in 35 sub-districts covered under the Vulnerable Group Development (VGD) programme. This year, distribution of fortified rice is planned in 66 sub-districts, according to the release. The Ministry of Food has agreed to integrate the distribution of fortified rice in two sub-districts under the government's new social safety net, known as the Food Friendly Programme. More than 350,000 people across 107 sub-districts will benefit from the distribution of fortified rice. Government forms committee to create Tk 100b fund for Jute Sector (The Financial Express) The government has set up an inter-ministerial committee aiming to create a low-interest fund of Tk 100 billion to help boost the jute sector. The sixmember committee will fix the source of fund and its operational method and make related policy for the proposed fund. It will submit a report to the government within next 30 days and put forward recommendations for creating the soft-loan fund. Once the government launches the fund, jute producers and exporters will get loans at 2.0 per cent interest rate. Anti-dumping duty on jute - Bangladesh moves Indian tribunal for its removal (The Financial Express) Bangladesh approached the Indian tribunal for removal of the anti-dumping duty on jute sacking from the country, as it's considered a trade barrier. Bangladesh's move to approach the Indian tribunal came a few days after the Indian authority had decided to take bank guarantee for payment of antidumping duty from its imports against import of jute sacking cloths from Bangladesh. Office of the deputy commissioners of customs on March 24 issued a circular to the all Indian importers of jute products to make sure bank guarantee at the highest rate of anti-dumping duty (ADD) until completion of investigation into an alleged circumvention of the anti-dumping duty imposed on export of jute sacking bags from Bangladesh. Other news 4 deals penned on Bangladesh-Singapore economic cooperation (New Age) Apex business organisations of Bangladesh and Singapore and government enterprises have signed four memorandums of understanding (MoUs) to foster their economic partnership in future. The instruments were signed following inauguration of Bangladesh-Singapore Business Forum-2018 in presence of prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who was is in Singapore on an official visit and attended the inaugural function of the forum as the chief guest. The first deal was signed between Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) and the International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore) on Collaboration of Investment Activities in Bangladesh. The second MoU on Digital leadership, Innovation and Digital Government Transformation was inked between ICT Division of Bangladesh and Institute of Systems Science of the National University of Singapore (NUS-ISS) to collaborate on developing and delivering capacity building programmes for public service officers in support of the Digital Bangladesh Vision 2021 Programme, and provide advisory and consultation for relevant national projects and initiative. The third MoU was signed between the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) to strengthen business relations 6 Newsflash March 2018

7 and promote economic cooperation. The last MoU was inked between Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), Dhaka and SMF to strengthen business relations and promote economic cooperation. MCCI president Nihad Kabir and SMF president Douglas Foo penned the deal on behalf of their respective sides. LG, Butterfly to make LED TV locally (The Daily Star) LG's local partner Butterfly has shelled out $100 million to set up a plant on 50 acres of land in Bhaluka. The plant's manufacturing line for LED TVs will roll first, followed by refrigerators and air conditioners next year. Since June last year, Samsung has been manufacturing four home appliance products in the two factories it set up with Transcom Group and Fair Electronics in the capital's Mohakhali area and Narsingdi respectively. LG will extend technical support to Butterfly for manufacturing TVs locally. Butterfly has already been manufacturing LED TVs at the plant on a trial basis for the last three years. The TVs manufactured at the plant, which will range from 24 inches to 55 inches, will be sold in Bangladesh for now for Tk 25,000 to Tk 2 lakh. Both the companies have taken the decision to set up the manufacturing plant in Bangladesh as assembling of appliances was progressively becoming expensive due to high import duties. RO plant starts operation in Tungipara (The Daily Star) Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant under village water supply project at Tungipara has started safe drinking water supply among 500 families recently. According to the Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), Gopalganj official sources, the plant is able to supply about 1,500 litre of safe drinking water per hour and the beneficiary families pay Tk 0.50 for a litre. On April 16, 2017 M/s Monalisa constructed the plant under the supervision of DPHE, Gopalganj at a cost of Tk 3.11 million. headquarters in New York, Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the UN. The three criteria are Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, Human Assets Index (HAI) and Economic Vulnerability Index (EVI). According to the UN's graduation threshold, the GNI per capita of a country has to be $1,230 or above. Bangladesh's GNI per capita is now $1,272. In terms of the HAI, a country must have a score of 66 or above. Bangladesh's score is now well above the threshold. In the economic vulnerability index (EVI), a country's score has to be 32 or below. Bangladesh's score is 25 in the EVI, an indicator of natural and trade-related shocks. The CDP will review Bangladesh's progress in 2021, and the country's official graduation from the LDC category will take place after a three-year transition period. Walton to export laptops to Nigeria (The Daily Star) Bangladesh's leading electronics manufacturer Walton teamed up with a Nigerian company to export laptops for the first time to the African country. Walton Laptop DG-Tech Industries Ltd will export 500 laptops to the firm -- Western Base Nigeria. SM Rezaul Alam, chairman of Walton Laptop DG-Tech Industries Ltd, and David None, director of the Nigerian company, signed a deal in this regard. Walton has already got export order for its laptops from the neighbouring country Nepal. Preparations are also complete to start exporting laptops to Bhutan and East Timor. The company exports its refrigerator, television, air-conditioner and other home appliances to Nigeria, Nepal, India, Bhutan, East Timor, Lebanon and the Middle East, he said. Moving out of LDC category: Bangladesh well on track - UN declares the country eligible for graduation from LDC in 2024 (The Daily Star) In a major leap forward, Bangladesh has become eligible Meghna sets up eight new plants for $300m (The to graduate to a developing country from a least Daily Star) Local conglomerate Meghna Group of developed one as it has met all the three criteria for Industries has invested $300 million (about Tk 2,500 the first time for getting out of the LDC bloc. The crore) to set up eight new factories at its newly-built Committee for Development Policy (CDP), a United two economic zones at Meghnaghat in Narayanganj. Nations panel, made an announcement on the The new factories, which will take the group's total country's eligibility at a meeting at the UN 7 Newsflash March 2018

8 industrial units to 40, will create 3,500 jobs. People's buying capacity has been increasing and we want to strengthen our market share, said Mostafa Kamal, chairman of the group, while explaining the rationale behind the big investment. The new units are for: beverage, edible oil refinery, tissue, pulp and paper, flour, chemicals, cement fibre, steel fabricate mills and a 40 megawatt power plant. Presently, Meghna has operations in fastmoving consumer goods, cement, commodities, chemicals, seed crushing, fish and poultry feed, power generation, salt, bottled water, banking and some other industrial products. ipay launches commercial operation (The Financial Express) ipay Systems Limited, a digital money transfer platform, launched its commercial operation in the country, aiming to make transactions more transparent and secure. Any client having an ipay wallet linked to his/her bank account will be able to make payments for products and services and transfer funds to other ipay members. The company has already got connected with all commercial banks in the country, making ipay an umbrella platform for digital money transfer in Bangladesh, said ipay officials. Finance Minister AMA Muhith formally inaugurated the service. Licensed by Bangladesh Bank as payment service provider (PSP), the company will help its clients transact money from mobile phones and computers through Internet. To get ipay services, a client needs to download the ipay application first on their smartphone, then open a ewallet on the app which will be linked to his/her bank account. Bangladesh to get $560m IDA credit for power, microenterprises (The Financial Express) The World Bank (WB) has approved $560 million for two projects in the power and microenterprises subsectors. The projects will help make the supply of power more reliable and the microenterprises environmentally sustainable. The $450 million Enhancement and Strengthening of Power Transmission Network in Eastern Region Project will expand the electricity transmission network in the eastern region, covering the greater Comilla and Noakhali and part of the greater Chittagong. It will provide new electricity connections to 275,000 households and 16,000 agricultural consumers and reduce the incidence of power interruptions. The project will expand the existing grid network by building 13 new substations and rehabilitating an existing one. It will also construct 290 kilometre new and rehabilitate 157 kilometre existing transmission lines. The $110 million Sustainable Enterprise Project (SEP), also approved and will help 20,000 microenterprises adopt environmentally-friendly practices. It covers manufacturing and agribusiness sectors, including leather, mini textiles, light engineering, plastic, food processing, metal products, livestock, horticulture, aquaculture, and poultry. The project will incentivise microenterprise clusters to use cleaner technologies and joint amenities such as shared recycling or storage facilities. It will provide loans to microenterprises for innovative, environmental-friendly technologies and practices. About 30 per cent of the firms that will benefit are owned by female entrepreneurs. Grameenphone CEO Foley elected AMTOB president (New Age) Grameenphone chief executive officer Michael Foley has been elected president of the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB). Foley is replacing AMTOB s outgoing president and CEO of Banglalink Erik Aas. Robi Axiata managing director and chief executive officer Mahtab Uddin Ahmed has been elected its vice-president 8 Newsflash March 2018

9 Events Bangladesh Denim Expo is going to be held on May 9-10, 2018 at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The expo will provide opportunities for international firms to franchise with Indian cleaning industries or vice versa to establish networking among professionals. The event is a must for all cleaning industries, dye industries and textile and garment industries and environmentalist. For details, please visit: Tenders Invitation for International Tender Mongla Post Authority under Ministry of Shipping issued a tender for Works- Dredging at the Outer Bar of Mongla Port. Tender issued on 25 February 2018, closing on 9 April 2018 at 2:00pm BST. For details, please contact: Sk. Sowkat Ali, Chief Engineer (C&H), 1 st floor, Civil & Hydraulic Bhaban, Mongla Port Authority. Phone: Fax: cech@mpa.gov.bd Invitation for International Tender Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) under the Ministry of Shipping issued a tender for dredging work on the said river routes. Tender issued on 2 March 2018, closing on 16 April 2018 at 12:00pm BST. For details, please contact: Additional Chief Engineer (Dredging), Dredging Department, BIWTA, BIWTA Bhaban (7 th floor), , Motijheel C/A, Dhaka. Phone: Fax: Ksaidbiwta@gmail.com Invitation for International Tender Sylhet gas Fields Limited (SGFL) under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources issued a tender for procurement of Drill Stem Testing (DST) Services with equipment for Workover of 3 Wells (KTL-1, RP-2 and RP-6) of Sylhet Gas Fields Limited, Sylhet, Bangladesh. Tender issued on 6 March 2018, closing on 17 April 2018 at 12:00pm BST. For details, please contact: Engr. Nizam Shariful Islam, Managing Director, SGFL, Sylhet gas Fields Limited, Dhaka Liaison Office, Petrocentre (13 th floor), 3, Kawran Bazar C/A, Dhaka Phone: Fax: md@sgfl.org.bd Invitation for International Tender Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh Limited under Power Division, Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources issued a tender for procurement of Mist Eliminator Filter Element and Tank Gasket for Siddhirganj 2x120 MW Peaking Power Plant, EGCB Ltd. Narayanganj, Bangladesh. Tender issued on 1 March 2018, closing on 17 April 2018 at 12:00pm BST. For details, please contact: Muhammad Saifur Rahman, Exutive Engineer (Procurement), Corporate Office, EGCB Ltd., Unique Heights (Level- 15 & 16), 117 Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka Phone: , Ext Fax: saifur.rahman@egcb.com.bd Invitation for International Tender Bangladesh Power Development Board under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources issued a tender for procurement of Poly Aluminium Chloride (PAC) for Chittagong Power Station, BPDB, Raozan, Chittagong. Tender issued on 27 February 2018, closing on 18 April 2018 at 11:00am BST. For details, please contact: Sayeed Akram Ullah, Director, Directorate of Purchase, BPDB, Dhaka, WAPDA Building (9 th floor), Motijheel C/A, Dhaka, Phone: & Fax: dir.purchase@bpdb.gov.bd 9 Newsflash March 2018

10 Invitation for International Tender Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources issued a tender for Procurement of Emulsion Explosives, Seismic Explosives (Gel Type), Electric Detonators and Detonating Cord. Tender issued on 24 March 2018, closing on 14 May 2018 at 12:15pm BST. For details, please contact: Md. Saiful Alam, Deputy General Manager, Incharge Purchase Maddhapara Granite Mining Company Ltd. Maddhapara, Parbatipur, Dinajpur, Bangladesh. Phone: purchase@mgmcl.org.bd Invitation for International Tender Bangladesh Power Development Board under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources issued a tender for Supply, Installation & Commissioning of Air Compressor with Dryer for Isolated Phase bus Duct (IPBD) of Shkalbaha 150 MW Peaking Power Station, BPDB, Chittagong, Bangladesh. Tender issued on 15 March 2018, closing on 17 May 2018 at 11:00am BST. For details, please contact: Sayeed Akram Ullah, Director, Directorate of Purchase, BPDB, Dhaka, WAPDA Building (9 th floor), Motijheel C/A, Dhaka, Phone: dir.purchase@bpdb.gov.bd Please remain updated on these and future tenders at the following website: More information The Embassy always welcomes your comments on, and suggestions for the Newsflash. We also encourage interested Dutch and Bangladeshi companies to place an article or message in our newsflash. For more information please contact our economic department at the Embassy in Dhaka through dha-ea@minbuza.nl, or by phone (00882) Newsflash March 2018