The government is moving to purchase new ships in a bid to modernise the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, shipping minister Afsarul Amin said on Saturday.

Amin placed emphasis on sea freighters for transport of import and export goods.

The minister, chairing BSC's 31st annual general meeting at its headquarters in Chittagong, did not however specify the timeframe or the number of ships to be purchased.

BSC managing director Md Ali Mostafa said BSC would purchase said tankers and cargo ships would be procured in phases based on the shipping demands.

Amin said the government has plans to restructure the state-run corporation, with modernisation in phases to make it a more profitable entity.

At its inception in 1972, BSC had 38 seagoing ships but the number has now dropped to just 13, most of which are old.

Amin said the government would expand the corporation's fleet in line with economic necessity.

The procurement of ships was needed in view of the global demands of the shipping trade, he said

The minister also expressed his grievance over the failure to procure ships with BSC's profits in the past.

The AGM report stated that BSC made a net profit of Tk 47 crore during FY 2007-08 from which 10 percent dividends would be disbursed among the BSC shareholders.

The acting secretary for shipping Md Masud Elahi and BSC secretary Mostafa Kamal Uddin were were present among others.

Source: bdnews24.com

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