TBS Report
21 October, 2026, 12:55 am
Last modified: 21 October, 2026, 01:06 am
The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) has challenged findings in a National Board of Revenue (NBR) study that put the average time to clear imported consignments at around 11 days, disputing the figures and arguing that most delays occur outside the port's jurisdiction.
In a rejoinder to a report published by The Business Standard on 12 October 2026, titled "Pay $48 more per container as cargo clearance time drags on to 11 days", the CPA called the report misleading and one-sided, and said it had damaged the authority's reputation and created confusion among port users and the public.
The TBS report was based on the NBR's Time Release Study (TRS), which examined the time required to clear imported consignments at different stages and the costs importers incur when cargo remains uncleared beyond the port's four-day free storage period.
The study's figures showed that importers could pay $6.90 per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) daily for the first seven chargeable days, amounting to $48.30, or about Tk5,965, over an 11-day clearance period.
Challenging the findings, the CPA said port operations accounted for 14% of the total clearance time, while customs procedures accounted for 8%. It argued that delays largely stemmed from procedures involving other government agencies.
Citing data from its Terminal Operating System (TOS), it said it took an average of five hours to clear cargo from the port premises, measured from vehicle entry to exit. For on-chassis delivery, it said the average time was 1.5 hours, including one hour for customs scanning and gate verification.
The CPA also said 70% to 80% of consignments were cleared within the four-day free storage period. The remaining 20% to 30% stayed at the port mainly because of procedures involving other agencies, including the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution, quarantine authorities, the explosives department and chemical testing facilities.
The CPA argued that it should not be held responsible for storage charges incurred because of delays caused by other agencies, adding that it remained committed to efficient cargo handling and supported closer coordination among the agencies involved.
The CPA's TOS figures measure the time vehicles spend inside port premises, from gate entry to exit, while the NBR's TRS examines the broader clearance process.
The two measurements cover different stages and are not necessarily contradictory: the time taken to deliver cargo after a vehicle enters the port does not, by itself, establish how long an importer waits for a consignment to become eligible for delivery.
The TBS report did not attribute the entire clearance delay to the CPA. It reported the clearance period and associated costs identified in the NBR study, which examined the roles of different agencies in the process.
The headline reflected the additional cost associated with the 11-day clearance period cited in the study. It did not state that the CPA alone was responsible for the delay or that the entire amount was charged by the port authority.