The government yesterday gave the approval to strike off a project that aimed to construct a bulk coal terminal at Payra port from the list of public-private partnership projects as part of its policy to discourage coal-fired power plants.

The cabinet committee on economic affairs gave consent to a proposal of the shipping ministry during a virtual meeting, chaired by Finance Minister AHM Mostafa Kamal.

The decision to delist the bulk coal terminal was taken as building a dedicated coal terminal at Payra port is not consistent with the government’s long-term plans on coal-powered electricity plants.

The Prime Minister’s Office also gave the nod to scrap the project as it is not economically viable, he said.

“Considering all these, the government has taken the decision,” Kamal added.

The Payra port, which sits on the west bank of Rabnabad channel at the confluence of the Galachipa-Tentulia river, started operation in 2016 with ship-to-ship cargo transfer on a limited scale.

The port’s components also include the terminals for containers, oil and liquefied natural gas.

On February 28, Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation, a member of the consortium building the Matarbari coal-fired power plant under phase-1, announced that it would not participate in the second phase’s bidding process because of its revised policy on de-carbonisation.

The development came as the global campaign to cut carbon emissions is gaining momentum.

On Wednesday, Nasrul Hamid, state minister for energy, said there were possibilities that the government itself might not continue the second phase of the coal project.

Last year, the prime minister approved a proposal to scrap 10 coal-run power plants that was okayed earlier.

Also yesterday, the government approved the purchase of 60 multipurpose accessible rescue boats for the Department of Disaster Management from state-owned Dockyard and Engineering Works Ltd through a direct procurement method.

Dockyard and Engineering Works Ltd is run by Bangladesh Navy.

The cabinet committee on government purchase gave its nod to a proposal to award Tk 180.79 crore land development work under the Sabrang tourism park project in Cox’s Bazar’s Teknaf to a joint venture.