The service will start on August 31 with one shipping per week. The container ship will depart from China’s Ningbo Port, stopping over at Shanghai and Shekou ports before reaching Chattogram. On the return trip, the ship will sail directly back to Ningbo. PIL is already operating two services BD1 and BD2 on the China – Chattogram route, but the containers are routed via the Singapore transshipment hub.
According to PIL, the CCE service will take 9 to 14 days to transport goods directly from China to Chattogram, a substantial improvement over the 20 to 22 days it currently takes via Singapore or Colombo. This new service is expected to benefit Bangladesh’s garment industry, which relies heavily on imports from China for raw materials.
