Bangladesh: Indian Adani Group eyes Sonadia deep sea port

Dhaka, July 7, 2014 (New Age): Indian conglomerate Adani Group has shown interest to construct the Sonadia deep seaport in the Bay of Bengal, after Dhaka held back awarding the billion dollar deal to Beijing in the last minute. Shipping ministry officials said the Adani group, led by Gautam Adani, a man with strong ties to India’s new prime minister Nerandra Modi, is expected to visit Dhaka this month to start negotiations on the mega-infrastructure project. Shipping secretary Syed Monjurul Islam told New Age the group had already sought his appointment. ‘I have not yet given them any date but will give it soon,’ he said. Monjurul did not disclose the issue at stake, however, other officials of the ministry said the deep seaport will dominate the meeting as the group has already inquired about the project in the Bay. They said the meeting between Adani Group officials and the shipping secretary will take place this month. The interest shown by the Gujrat-based ports operator and energy producer comes just after Dhaka and Beijing failed to strike a deal on the development of the port during a visit of prime minister Sheikh Hasina to China last month. Shipping ministry officials said the interest of the Indian company – apparently furnished by the blessings of the Indian prime minister – will put the government in a difficult position, given the geopolitical sensitivity of the project. The Adani Group had won many deals including power and real estate in India during the last one decade when Narendra Modi was chief minister of Gujarat (2001–14). The company’s annual revenue stands at US$8.7 billion. During the last election campaign in India, Rahul Ghandi, vice-president of the Indian National Congress, alleged the money they (Modi govt) gave to Adani was being in turn used for his marketing (election campaign). C Raja Mohan, an influential Indian foreign expert, during a recent visit to Dhaka said Delhi should back the consortium approach to regional infrastructure development, after Beijing signalled its readiness to work with India on the Sonadia deep seaport. The Bay has already become a battlefield for establishing a sphere of influence between India and China because of its crucial geopolitical location. China invested US$ 500 million to open the Colombo International Container Terminal in Sri Lanka in August 2013 and helped build a new US$ 450 million deep seaport in the southern Lankan city of Hambantota in 2012. Also in the last year, China took control of Pakistan’s Gwadar Port. The Chinese progress on the world’s busiest international shipping lane has worried India. Former secretary Wahiduzzaman, who was chief of a government committee on the deep sea port, admitted that the government preferred a consortium work on the construction given its geopolitical importance and also to maximise our benefit from the port. The government wants to make the country a regional hub through the port by catering to the needs of neighbouring countries, he said. The country needs a deep seaport as the existing sea port in Chittagong is not capable of handling large vessels, against a backdrop of growing incoming and outgoing containers worth more than US$ 55 billion annually. The deep seaport has been identified as one of the six fast-track projects by the government. But resource constraint has held back the construction of the port despite the feasibility study being completed in 2009. Centre for policy dialogue executive director Mustafizur Rahman said China had long been trying to connect its upcoming provinces with the closest sea routes. Seaports in Chittagong could serve as a better option for them, he said, adding there is no problem building the proposed port with Chinese help, or help from others. He suggested the government not delay further in finding a suitable source of funding.