SAPL begins handling of break-bulk raw cotton at its Muktarpur terminal
Summit Alliance Port Limited (SAPL) recently started handling of break-bulk raw cotton at its Muktarpur terminal.
The company, with its pioneering, timely and cost-effective service of facilitating Bangladesh's spinning mills and ultimately the RMG sectors by providing a much-needed alternative logistics solution for their vital industrial raw material i.e., break-bulk raw cotton from India, reads a press release.
SAPL Muktarpur Terminal provides fast and efficient handling of cotton bales using specialised cranes along with multiple warehouses for cargo storage.
SAPL began grain, rice and maize cargo handling from India from 2021 and received excellent response from the traders.
"This new service by SAPL Muktarpur Terminal comes at a time when the Bangladeshi raw cotton importers who are finding it challenging to import from traditional sources such as Central Asia, Brazil, USA and West Africa due to the disruption in global supply-chain, unavailability of containers and historically high freight-rates. As a result, the market demand of raw cotton from India has increased tremendously in the last few years," remarked Jowher Rizvi, managing director of Summit Alliance Port.
He also said that they are supporting the industries by providing alternate and environmentally sustainable sourcing while avoiding regular congestion at the land ports
In 2021, Bangladesh imported 8.5 Million bales cotton bales weighing approximately 1.85 Million MT and this figure is projected to cross 9 million bales in the current year due to the strong rise in demand for yarn and fabrics from the local RMG exporters.
The inland river route from Kolkata to Muktarpur provides an unparalleled safe passage for the raw cotton cargo throughout the year that is a guaranteed and time-bound option which is not possible on the traditional sea route for container shipments or via land ports.