Installation to be delayed, cost to rise by Tk362cr

The project cost of installing the third submarine cable in the country is up for a 52 per cent or Tk 362 crore increase due to the ongoing US dollar crisis and other reasons.

The project, aimed at expanding the country’s telecommunication system, might also get a one-year extension from the original deadline of June 2024.

A revised proposal by the Post and Telecommunication Division in this regard is expected to be approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Tuesday, a senior official of the Planning Ministry told The Business Post (TBP) on Monday.

The committee, chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is also likely to approve seven other projects on the day, the official added.

“Due to dollar exchange rate, the cost of the project will be increased by Tk 156 crore and Tk 206 crore will be increased for other reasons,” the official said. 

With the proposed increase, the project’s cost is estimated to be Tk 1055.23 crore, of which Tk 476.21 crore will come from the government exchequer and Tk 579.01 crore will come from the implementing agency the Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Limited (BSCCL).

If the revised proposal is approved, the project will be set for completion by June 2025 instead of the original deadline of 2024.

According to the original project proposal, BSCCL will install a cable that will connect with the proposed SEA-ME-WE-6 submarine cable, which will run from Singapore to France, extending across the Mediterranean Sea through the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Red Sea.

The cable will have core landing stations in Singapore, India, Djibouti, Egypt and France.

The Bangladesh branch will stretch to the cable landing station in Cox’s Bazar through the Bay of Bengal.