World Trade Center Earns Tk 81 Crore from Single Tenant Deal
Photo: Agamir Somoy
The construction of the country’s first and only World Trade Center cost Tk 200 crore. Now, a single government institution has rented the facility for three years, generating Tk 81 crore in revenue, recovering nearly two-fifths of the project cost from just one agreement.
The 24-storey modern building, located in the heart of Agrabad in Chattogram, was completed in 2016. Built without bank loans, the Chattogram Chamber of Commerce has managed to lease or rent only about 100,000 square feet in the past 10 years since its opening. Floors from the 7th to the 21st remained entirely vacant, resulting in minimal revenue.
Now, for the first time, the Chamber has leased 160,000 square feet of space to Chattogram Customs for three years at Tk 81 crore. This marks the highest single revenue deal in the history of the World Trade Center, according to the Chamber.
Until the agreement with Customs, floors from the 2nd to 6th were rented out through both lease and rental arrangements to various organizations. Chamber leaders preferred leasing over renting, but leasing generated very limited income. Rental arrangements offered higher returns, but the high rates discouraged most businesses, leaving only large corporate groups able to afford space. As a result, most of the World Trade Center’s 700,000 square feet remained vacant.
Chattogram Chamber Joint Secretary Nurul Absar Chowdhury declined to comment on why the floors remained unoccupied for so long. He said, “Chattogram Customs will pay Tk 60 per square foot as rent and Tk 50 per square foot for air conditioning, totaling Tk 110 per square foot.”
The Chattogram Customs House, the country’s highest revenue-generating customs office, is now demolishing its 68-year-old building. A new 14-storey modern facility will be constructed on the site at Nimtala.
Customs has signed a three-year lease agreement with the Chattogram Chamber, paying Tk 81 crore in total at Tk 27 crore per year. The agreement was signed on Tuesday, and Customs operations will continue at the site until July 2029.
Assistant Commissioner of Chattogram Customs Sharif Mohammad Al Amin said the new building is being constructed with World Bank funding. “We must vacate the customs house by June 30 and hand over the land to the contractor,” he said.
He added that relocating decades of records, reports, and product samples within a short time is challenging, but there is no alternative.
The country’s only World Trade Center in Agrabad’s commercial area was built on nearly 75 decimals of land and inaugurated in 2016. The 21-storey glass-clad modern structure has a total floor space of around 700,000 square feet and stands about 300 feet tall. Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia laid its foundation stone in 2006, and construction continued for nearly a decade. It was officially inaugurated on January 30, 2016 by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.