Jumbangla Desk: The Ministry of Food has taken the initiative to import 50 thousand metric tons of wheat from Dubai to ensure the food security of the country. 1 crore 47 lakh 47 thousand 500 dollars will be spent on importing this wheat at the rate of 294.95 dollars per metric ton (without duty and VAT). About 162 crore 96 lakh taka in Bangladeshi currency.
It is said that a proposal in this regard may be presented for approval in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Procurement to be held next Wednesday. M/s Grain-Flower DMCC, a Dubai-based company in the United Arab Emirates, has been nominated to supply the wheat after tender scrutiny.
According to the sources of the Ministry of Food, the amount of wheat stock at the government level is 1 lakh 53 thousand metric tons. Apart from this, the demand for wheat in the current financial year 2023-2024 is 9 lakh 22 thousand metric tons at the government level. Of this, no wheat has been procured from internal sources so far. In view of this, the budget has been allocated for the import of 6 lakh metric tonnes of wheat from international sources. Against this, 3 lakh metric tonnes will be imported from Russia under the G-to-G agreement.
On the other hand, an agreement to import 150,000 metric tons of wheat has been executed through international open tender. Of this, 46 thousand metric tons of wheat have been imported. In this continuation, an initiative has been taken to import 50 thousand metric tons of wheat from Dubai under Package-4.
According to sources, 12 lakh 39 thousand metric tons of wheat has already been imported in the private sector. Five companies participated in the wheat import tender. Other companies participating in the tender are – M/s Agrocorp International of Singapore (proposed price $298.38 per metric ton); M/s Reliance International Limited, an Abu Dhabi-based company in the United Arab Emirates (proposed rate $299.79 per metric ton); Dubai based company M/s MC Food DMCC (proposed price $309.95 per metric ton) and Dubai based M/s Cereal Crops Trading LLC (proposed price $318 per metric ton). All the five organizations participating in the tender are considered responsive. M/s Grain-Flower DMCC has been nominated as the lowest bidder.
According to the current market price of wheat from 8 sources (Russia, Romania, Black Sea, France, Argentina, Australia, Canada and America) in the wheat import proposal, the average price of wheat per metric ton in the international market is 337.53 dollars. Except for Russia ($290.02 per metric ton) and Romania ($282.08), almost all wheat exporters have market prices higher than the lowest prices received.
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In the context of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the global food crisis, the much-discussed Black Sea grain agreement not being renewed after July 17, and the current market prices of wheat in countries other than Russia and Romania, the prices offered by the lowest bidders participating in the tender appear to be in line with international market rates. The Ministry of Food is doing.
