The 19 private inland container depots (ICDs) supporting Chittagong Port suspended the of export cargo and empty containers from December 11 as terminal owners protested the continued ban on amending service charge rates.

Each depot has issued notifications to customers saying it would stop loading export cargo and handling empty containers. The depot owners argued that the existing rate structure had remained unchanged since 2016 despite multiple increases in labour operational costs and they could no longer continue operations under this rate regime.

Ruhul Amin Sikder, general secretary of the Bangladesh Inland Container Depot Association (ICDA), confirmed the development but said no organisational decision had been made yet. He said, “Individual depot owners have informed customers and shipping lines that cannot continue providing services at the old rates.”

The rate revision was the core issue of the standoff. In August, BICDA had sought a 30-3% increase in rates including stuffing charges, demurrage, lifting charges, document handling charges, and transportation charges. Port users rejected the demand for a rate hike, which landed in court after the port authority suspended the revised rates. Later, the shipping ministry ruled that no new charges could be levied without the approval of the Tariff Board.

No headway was made in the issue for three months, and the depot owners have now taken a unilateral action. Shipping lines have reportedly been given verbal instructions not to containers to these inland container depots from Thursday, although no formal notice was issued to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Bangladesh Kwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), shipping agents or the port authority.

Industry stakeholders warned of immediate consequences of the move. The 1 ICDs handle all export cargo, a majority of the empty containers, and 65 types of import cargo, handling about 2.2 million containers a year. Their storage capacity of 106,000 TEUs is almost double that of the Chittagong Port-owned depots.

Once closed down, all cargo movement would be stalled; the port would face congestion if empty containers were not moved out; the supply chain would also be disrupted – which would deal a heavy blow to the exportoriented industries, especially the garment sector.

Port secretary Omar Faruk said the port authority was aware of the issue but had not received any formal notice from BICDA.

Khairul Alam Sujon, director of the Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association, expressed concern over the sudden move. “Such unannounced operational disruptions will affect the countrys credibility in global trade. Port operations depend on international coordination and a breakdown in one link can have far-reaching consequences,” he said