Bangladesh and Japan on Friday resumed negotiations with a Japanese consortium in a renewed effort to operationalise the long-delayed Third Terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) on mutually beneficial terms.
Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Afroza Khanom Rita said the government is working to bring the new terminal into operation as quickly as possible.
“We had a good meeting. We are trying to make the third terminal operational as soon as possible as per the instruction of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman,” she told journalists after the meeting.
“We hope to reach a win-win deal with Japan to open the new terminal.”
The high-level meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and marked the first formal negotiation on the issue under the newly formed BNP-led government.
Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Afroza Khanom Rita, Prime Minister’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Rashiduzzaman Millat and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam attended the talks from the Bangladesh side.
Speaking to reporters, Humayun Kabir and State Minister Millat described the discussions as positive and expressed hope that both sides could soon reach a mutually acceptable solution.
Millat said Bangladesh and Japan are seeking a settlement that safeguards Bangladesh’s interests while correcting shortcomings in earlier agreements to ensure a balanced outcome in operating the third terminal.
He said complications had arisen over certain charges and operational arrangements in the earlier management agreement.
Civil aviation agreements generally involve three categories of charges, he said, adding that differences had emerged between the two sides over some of those issues.
“Both sides discussed the matter in detail. Bangladesh presented its proposals and the Japanese side also shared their position,” Millat said.
He said the Japanese side agreed to review Bangladesh’s proposals and submit a revised offer soon, after which further negotiations would be held to finalise the arrangement.
Humayun Kabir said the government is reviewing the issue with Bangladesh’s national interest as the top priority.
“The discussions between the two sides are progressing positively, and we hope to see meaningful progress soon,” he said.
The latest round of talks followed Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s directive to reopen negotiations with the Japanese consortium to operationalise the nearly completed terminal.
Although construction of the facility is more than 99 per cent complete, it has yet to begin full commercial operations.
Officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) said the delay largely resulted from indecision during the previous interim government, when negotiations over terminal management, operational control and revenue-sharing arrangements failed to reach consensus.
The Japanese consortium involved in the project includes Japan Airport Terminal Company, Sumitomo Corporation, Sojitz Corporation and Narita International Airport Corporation.
The terminal project has been largely financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Approved in 2017 and launched in 2019 at a cost of about Tk21,398 crore, the terminal covers around 542,000 square metres.
It is designed to handle an additional 12 to 16 million passengers annually and about 900,000 tonnes of cargo.
Industry stakeholders say operationalising the facility is crucial to easing congestion at Dhaka airport and advancing Bangladesh’s ambition to become a regional aviation hub in South and Southeast Asia.
