High speed to build vessels for European, Japanese companies

Highspeed promoted the largest Japan-Bangladesh joint venture in collaboration with Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding Co Ltd in Bangladesh in the year 1979 in the field of Shipbuilding and Heavy Engineering, and completed many large infrastructure projects including petro-chemical industries, hydropower plant and many specialized ships including barge mounted power station in collaboration with Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding Co Ltd of Japan.

To date Highspeed built more than 100 specialised ships, such as fishing trawlers, oil tankers, dry cargo vessels, passenger ferries, coastal patrol boats, and thus contributed substantially to the national economy. Besides maritime involvement, Highspeed Engineering wing has successfully completed many plant engineering projects with several multinationals of Japan and Europe. To cite some examples, Highspeed completed lot of steel structural works, pipe lines, pressure vessels, installation of heavy machineries and equipments, civil construction, storage tanks of Zia Fertilizer, Jamuna Fertilizer, KAFCO, Chittagong Eastern Oil Refinery, Kaptai Hydro Power, Parbatipur Railway workshop works among many other similar large projects.

Highspeed promoted a large joint venture in the field of deep sea fishing industry. Completed for the first time five deep sea shrimp and white fish trawlers and thus exported huge marine food and earning foreign currency for the country and also a new “technology” was transferred to Bangladesh from Japan as Highspeed built Deep Sea Fishing Trawlers for the first time in Bangladesh in 1981.

Highspeed built the first two container terminals with Interbeton BV Holland in 1986 with the World Bank finance.

Highspeed successfully completed the construction of 8 Food Grain Carriers for FAO (UNDP) under Swiss Government Food Security Programme. This is the first time that Bangladeshi shipyard participated against so many nations of the world and earned great fame for the country as well as foreign currency for the country.

Highspeed Group owns and operates a large fleet of 25 oil tankers which carry more than a million tons of POL products annually for Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation.

The latest achievement of Highspeed Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd is the formation of the joint venture company with Mitsui OSK Line, the largest shipping line of the world, which is due to start functioning from January 1, 2009.

Employment–the Group employs over a thousand people including engineers, specialists, skilled workers, a team of marketing and accounting personnel with office network, warehouse and terminals in Bangladesh including Dhaka, Chittagong, Mongla (Khulna) and Sylhet.

The chairman of Highspeed Group is also the president of three major associations of water sector (Launch Owners Association, Bangladesh Shipbuilders Association and Bangladesh Cargo Owners Associations) which employ millions of workers. The members of three associations carry 70 per cent of dry cargo, 90 per cent of POL product and 40 percent of passengers of total Bangladesh capacity.

For the above notable achievements, Chairman of Highspeed Group KM Mahmoodur Rahman received the prestigious award from the Government of Bangladesh on October 16, 2008 on World Maritime Day for his outstanding contribution in maritime sector.

The Highspeed shipyard has now undertaken an ambitious expansion plan to construct and export foreign vessels as several enquiries are received by us almost everyday from Europe and Middle East. It has also signed MoU with a European company and also with a Japanese company for construction and delivery of several types of vessels. In this yard, Highspeed is capable of constructing vessels of up to 7500 DWT.

Source: The New Nation