The decision might be taken today at a meeting of the cabinet committee on economic affairs. The two projects are the priority ones of the present government.
The first project involves upgrading the 226-kilometre-long Dhaka-Sylhet road into a four-lane highway at an estimated cost of $1.58 billion and other project construction of the Marine Drive Expressway and Sitakunda-Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar Coastal Protection Works at the proposed cost of $2.8 billion.
Two highway projects will be constructed by China Harbor Engineering limited.
Road Transport and Highways Division, in its proposal, said Chinese companies will implement the projects through the government-to-government deal.
On August 22, Finance Minister wrote the Chinese ambassador in Bangladesh, Ma Mingqiang,
for funding of Dhaka-Sylhet highway into four-lane project construction.
In recent years, the government has been trying to get Chinese financial assistance to implement 18 projects worth over $14 billion.
Earlier, projects like Info-Sarker Phase III worth $150 million and tunnel construction under the Karnaphuli river worth over $1 billion were awarded to the Chinese companies without any tender.
On July 20, the cabinet committee on purchase decided to purchase service worth over $4.3 billion from the China Railway Engineering Corporation to lay Dhaka-Jessore rail line through Padma Bridge.
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