By IANS,
Dhaka : Bangladesh plans to raise part of the fund required to construct a bridge that will be the country’s largest civil engineering project from the stock market, the finance adviser (minister) said here.
Bangladesh’s communication ministry will meet here Sunday to decide on the plans to tap the stock market to raise money for the Padma Multipurpose Bridge, The New Age said.
“Apart from external financing, we will have to collect around Tk 40 billion ($660 million approx.) from internal sources to construct the bridge. There is a possibility to raise a portion of the fund from the capital market,” A.B. Mirza Azizul Islam told a discussion here Saturday.
The proposed bridge will connect the southwestern region direct with the capital and other parts of the country.
The Jamuna Multipurpose Bridge was opened in 1997. Bangladesh has a similar plan for bridging Brahmaputra.
The 6.01 km bridge between Mawa and Jajira over the river Padma will cost $1.8 billion (around Tk 120 billion), with $1.15 billion to be provided by international lenders, including Asian Development Bank, World Bank, Islamic Development Bank and Japan Bank of International Corporation.
The 25-metre wide, four-lane Padma Bridge with a provision of railway tracks is expected to take six years and contribute to the national economy through boosting the gross domestic product (GDP) by 1.2 per cent.