Dhaka Metro Rail Loan Deal Signed with Japan

[eastwatch]

Metro rail loan deal signed

Thursday, February 21, 2013
Metro rail loan deal signed
Japan to provide $116m this fiscal year; deal for the rest fund later
Staff Correspondent

Bangladesh and Japan yesterday signed separate deals under which Tokyo will provide $792.82 million to implement four projects, including the long-cherished metro rail system.

Of the amount, $784.82 million is soft loan while the rest $8 million is grant. With an interest rate of 0.01 percent, the loan is payable in 40 years including 10 years of grace period.

For the metro rail project, Japan is initially providing $116.32 million.

Japan had earlier agreed to provide 85 percent of the total metro rail cost of $2.7 billion, while the rest of the money will be borne by the government.

Yesterday's deal was for a pre-construction phase. A separate deal for the rest of the funding for the project would be signed at a later date, officials said.

The $116.32 million will be provided within the current fiscal year for a detailed design of metro rail project. The 20.1-kilometre metro rail, the country's first-ever, starts from Uttara Third Phase and touches Pallabi, Mirpur-10, Khamarbari, Farmgate, Sonargaon Hotel, Shahbagh, Doel Chattar and Topkhana Road before ending at Motijheel.

A consultant will be appointed soon to prepare the design, which will take two to three years. This means construction of the metro rail will begin at the end of 2016 and take five years to complete. So, the city commuters are not going to get the service before 2021.

As per a JICA study, metro rail will operate every three minutes and carry 60,000 passengers per hour. There will be 16 stations on the route.

Two other deals signed yesterday were on the development of power transmission network, for which Japan is providing $208 million, and development of Bheramara combined cycle power plant, for which Japan's loan is $460.5 million.

Japan is giving the grant of $8 million for ground water investigation and development of deep groundwater source in urban and rural areas.

Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Abul Kalam Azad and Japan's Ambassador in Dhaka Shiro Sadoshima signed the agreements at the Ruposhi Bangla Hotel in presence of Finance Minister AMA Muhith, Communications Minister Obaidul Quader, PM's Energy Adviser Toufiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury and the Chief Representative of JICA (Japan International Development Cooperation).

POWER TRANSMISSION NETWORK DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
The objectives of this project are to upgrade and enhance capacity of the national power transmission network through construction and expansion of transmission lines as well as sub-stations in Chittagong, Comilla, Lakshmipur, Mymensingh, Barisal, Shariatpur, Jessore, Bogra, Rajshahi and Nilphamari districts.

The JICA assistance will be used for installation of materials, construction and consulting services. The total cost of the project is Tk 2,426 crore and be implemented in five years.

COMBINED POWER PLANT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
A 360-megawatt power plant will be set up under the project to meet increasing demand for electricity in the country's northwest region at a cost of Tk 4,140 crore. The project was launched in 2010 with a target to complete it by next year.

GROUNDWATER INVESTIGATION PROJECT
The project aims at searching potential safe sources of deep aquifer in the arsenic and saline water prone areas. Big diameter production well using advanced technology will also be dug under it.

Japanese experts will train the Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE) staff on the use of geophysical survey equipment for their capacity development on drilling of deep well and groundwater exploration techniques.

The estimated cost of the project is Tk 103 crore. The project will kick off this year and will be completed by 2019, according to official documents.

 

[integra]

Took this much time just for the pre construction phase, who knows If'll be alive
when this metros tread the skylines.

 

[BDforever]

i posted same news in similar thread , please check it out and close it thanks

 

[Skull and Bones]

Why Japan? Why not China? They could have done it for a lot cheaper price, even free for an ally like Bangladesh.

 

[eastwatch]

Why Japan? Why not China? They could have done it for a lot cheaper price, even free for an ally like Bangladesh.

J1) apan has been working on the project for the last few years. It has prepared the feasibility study report, selected the route and estimated the construction cost. The Metro Rail will be laid on ground+ level in most of its length. However, some of the lengths may go overhead on steel/concrete structures and some may go underground depending upon the situation.

2) This 20.1 km long railway will not be the only metro line work, this is what I think after reading the railway map of Tokyo. This City has 13 subway lines and many other on-ground lines. Subways have separate names, such as, Asakusa line, Mita line, Shinjuku line, Ginza line, Marunouchi line etc.

3) The surface lines are Yamanote (circular/loop) line, Chuo line, Sobu line etc. There are many many outward bound medium distance railway lines from Tokyo, such as, Tobu Tozo line, Hibiya line, Keio line, Inogashira line, Keihin Tohoku line and many others. There are also many long distance trains from Tokyo, such as, Bullet trains, Tokai line, Tobu line etc.

4) Of the subway lines, only Ginza line was built before the 2nd WW, others after the war. Now, seeing what the train system should be in a developed country, and knowing it is almost impossible to develop the railway as well as other projects with foreign help, I do not really think we should keep on asking Japan, China or others, to do our own works.

5) Rather, the GoB should help establish/train a few local companies, who should learn from the current project from the Japanese, and finally take over the survey, design and construction works of many railway lines in and near Dhaka, and in other towns. This is how China, India and other notable developing countries are doing.

6) They develop manpower as well as required organizations, and ask them to do these development works. There is no alternate to this and there is no shortcut route to develop. A country's own population must work by themselves. This is how the GDP expands.