First Dhaka Elevated Expressway Company, Ltd. (FDEE), a project company owned by China Shandong International Economic & Technical Cooperation Group Ltd (CSI), Sinohydro Cooperation and Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited (ITD) has reached financial close for the Dhaka Elevated Expressway Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project in the capital of Bangladesh.

The financial close was reached at the end of February. FDEE signed a facility agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) for financing the project in April 2019. China EXIM Bank will finance US$ 461 million and ICBC will provide US$ 400 million to implement the project. The government has also disbursed its committed funds, called viability gap funding (VGF) for the project.

The population of Dhaka is increasing rapidly, and the transport sector needs to expand to meet this rapid growth. The huge number of growth in transport is resulting in high levels of traffic congestion and operational difficulties. In order to minimize the acute traffic congestion, Bangladesh Bridge Authority (Government of Bangladesh) intends to deliver a project for the construction of approximately 23 km of Elevated Expressway in the northern part of Dhaka.

The project includes design, construction, operation, and maintenance of a four-lane Elevated Expressway that will commence at Shahjalal International Airport and run alongside New Airport Road, with the rail alignment through the Mohakhali, Tejgaon, and Moghbazar to Kamalapur Railway-station and then the alignment crossing over Jatrabari before connecting to Dhaka Chittagong Highway. The scope of works includes the construction of culverts, toll plazas, underpass and overpass, lay byes, wayside amenities; installation of a computerized toll collection system, providing adequate lights and development of service areas with all required facilities.

The project is planned to be completed by 2022 and it will be the first big infrastructure project under PPP initiative in Bangladesh.