Ctg customs to auction 74 scrap cars tomorrow

Chattogram Custom House is set to auction off 74 cars tomorrow (5 February) that have been reduced to scrap due to prolonged storage and legal complications. 

The reserve price is set at Tk 53,488 per tonne.

According to customs officials, the cars were imported but never discharged from Chattogram Port over the past 10-15 years. 

Despite public notices urging the importers to take action, no response was received. As a result, the vehicles deteriorated after years of exposure to the elements, becoming completely unusable.

Following a recommendation by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) on 4 September 2022, the Chattogram Customs Authority dismantled the vehicles and destroyed them as scrap metal in June last year.

The scrap iron recovered from the vehicles will be sold at tomorrow's public auction, divided into 58 lots. The auction will take place at the Customs Auction Shed at 12pm.

Mohammad Morshed, manager of KM Corporation, the government's auction management partner, said, "Only actual users of the iron scrap who hold industrial IRCs and are VAT-compliant can participate in the auction."

He added that participants must submit a pay order of Tk3 lakh to qualify. The auction will be conducted on a per tonne basis.

Chattogram Custom House officials said successful bidders will need to pay the actual weight-based value and applicable customs duties before the release of the scrap metal. 

Additionally, all expenses related to weight measurement will be borne by the auction participants.