A buoy-laying vessel ‘Rangabali’ built for Payra Seaport by Ananda Shipyard & Slipways Ltd (ASSL), inaugurated on Thursday. The ship was floated at Meghnaghat in Narayanganj, which will reach Payra port within a month.
ASSL Chairmen DR Abdullahel Bari said in the inauguration program “Ananda Shipyard & Slipways Ltd is a pioneer for ship building industries in Bangladesh. We now have the capability to build various types of ships of high quality using latest technology. Rangabali is very advanced quality ship. We expect that the ship will serve its best purpose for Payra sea port.”
“There is no need to import ships from abroad for our country. Many companies in Bangladesh are making ships. We expect that this sector will become an export oriented sector in a very short time,” he continued. ASSL Managing Director Afruja Bari said, “Rangabali was built by high quality control. The ship will serve at least 50 years. There are still some problems in ship building industries. The development-friendly government will take appropriate measures to solve the problems. This is our expectation.” Kaiser Mahmud, deputy project director of Payra Port Authority, said Ananda Shipyard has made the ship within the stipulated time. This is a great news for Payra Port.
“Payra Port is a fast track project of the government. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is closely monitoring the project. We have to send the progress report of the project every month. Ananda has built a quality ship, which will serve in the long run for Payra Port,” he added.
Among others, Payra Port Authority’s dock master Captain S M Shariful Islam, deputy supervision consultant Monirul Islam, ASSL deputy managing director Abdullah Nahid Nigar, executive director Tariqul Islam, director (Technical) Saiful Islam, Abdullah Nazma Nawroz were also present in the ceremony.
“Earlier, Payra Port Authority signed an agreement with ASSL to buy the ship worth Tk 34 crore 49 lakh. The ship is now ready for use in Payra Seaport. The length of the ship is 44 meters, width 9.25 meters and height 3.5 meters,” an ASSL official said.
ASSL director (technical) Mohammad Saiful Islam told Bangladesh Post the new ship will be used for buoy laying and handling at the Payra deep sea port. The buoy is used as markup of navigational routes in the river. It’s a floating structure and each weighs 10-16 tonnes. There are beacons with red and green signal lights. There is a crane with a capacity of 20 tonnes used for buoy handling on the ship. ASSL, experienced in shipbuilding since 1983, got incorporated in 1999 as a private limited company and became public in 2009. Adopting modern shipbuilding technologies and practices since inception, ASSL has attained commendable expertise in the field of use of both steel and aluminum shipbuilding. It is the first ship exporter from Bangladesh and holder of export gold trophy along with quite a few national and international quality awards.
