Groundbreaking Ceremony Marks Start of Phuentsholing Mini Dry Port Construction
23 June 2017
A groundbreaking ceremony on 23 June 2017 initiated construction of the mini dry port in Phuentsholing, Bhutan. The project, costing around $2 million, will be funded by an Asian Development Bank (ADB) grant approved in July 2014, with additional funding from the Government of Bhutan. Estimated for completion within 20 months, this dry port will improve Bhutan’s logistics capability and augment its trade competitiveness, helping ease the flow of traffic in Phuentsholing—the main border crossing point between Bhutan and India—and reducing the cost of cross-border trade transactions.
The dry port will be designed to accommodate more than 45 trucks, and will have facilities including:
- A truck scanner and weigh bridge;
- Warehousing facilities;
- Customs clearance section for imports and exports; and
- Related Customs services, such as immigration and quarantine inspections.
Once constructed, it connect to a gate in Baubazaar area in Jaigaon, India. A northern bypass road will also be constructed through the port.
Mr. Lyonpo Lekey Dorji, Minister of Economic Affairs, Bhutan, noted the importance of the project to Bhutan's growing trade volume.
Mr. Sonam Tenzin, Director General, Department of Trade, Bhutan, emphasized how the dry port will add value to exports, and considers it a significant development for the business community.
The dry port is being implemented by ADB under the Bhutan SASEC Road Connectivity Project. Other components of this project include:
- An Alay land Customs station;
- Roads, including 68.3 kilometers along the Southern East-West Highway; 1.2 km access road from the border-crossing point near Pasakha; and approximately 2.7 km bypass road around Phuentsholing City; and
- Draft engineering designs for Alay land Customs station, and Phuentsholing City bypass road.
Bhutan is currently ranked 135 out of 160 countries in the World Bank global logistics performance indicators. Building trade infrastructure is one of the main priorities of the Government.
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