Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation
Profile
- Head
- Brig Gen SM Zahid Hasan
- Role
- Chairman
- Annual budget
- —
- Staff
- —
- Established
- 1972
- Legal basis
- Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises (Nationalisation) Order, 1972 (President's Order No. 27 of 1972); formal operations began 1 July 1972 with 74 nationalised mills
BTMC is executing a lease-out drive for its ~25 closed mills: Valika Woolen Mills (Chattogram) leased to Loyal Tex Limited, Sylhet Textile Mills to Fast Icon Limited, Kurigram Textile Mill to Western Engineering Private Limited (signed 26 January 2025); an international PPP tender is open for Darwani Textile Mill (Nilphamari) and Dinajpur Textile Mill with four groups in the running; a May 4, 2026 PM-level meeting set the political priority for accelerating reopening; BTMC carries Tk 76.54 billion in bank loans with ~99% in default, and currently operates 18 of its original 86 mills.
Recent activity
- 2026-02-17 reform Government publicly committed to handing over all ~50 closed state-owned textile and jute mills (25 textile under BTMC, ~25 jute under BJMC) to private investors via 30-year lease or PPP; Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashiruddin stated negotiations for additional mills were underway after three had already been leased in the preceding six months. ↗↗
- 2026-04-12 procurement State Minister Shariful Alam visited Nilphamari and confirmed that an international PPP tender has been floated for the Darwani Textile Mill (shut since 1995, briefly operated until 2022); four major business groups have submitted expressions of interest; minister stated the mill is likely to reopen within two to three months. ↗↗↗
- 2026-04-20 policy Government formalised plan to transfer all government-owned textile and jute mills (approximately 50 units combined across BTMC and BJMC) to private operators through long-term lease or PPP agreements; lease terms set at 30 years with renewal option, requiring lessee to maintain textile production use and install rooftop solar. ↗↗↗
- 2026-05-04 policy PM Tarique Rahman chaired a meeting at the Bangladesh Secretariat on revival of closed textile and jute mills; directed easing of project approvals, facilitating investor financing, and immediate action to reopen shuttered government factories; Commerce and Industries Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir, State Minister Shariful Alam, and BIDA Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun were among attendees. ↗↗
Provenance & notes
BTMC was formed under President's Order No. 27 of 1972 (Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises Nationalisation Order), which took 74 privately owned textile factories into state ownership effective 1 July 1972; twelve additional mills built under annual development programmes brought the original portfolio to 86. The portfolio has contracted sharply through closures, leases, and PPP handovers and now stands at 18 operational mills (Wikipedia; motj.gov.bd). BTMC carries the largest loan liability of any Bangladeshi state-owned enterprise: Tk 76.54 billion in bank loans with approximately 99% non-performing (Wikipedia, cross-checked against New Age SoE losses report, article ID 256245). Current chairman: Brig Gen SM Zahid Hasan confirmed as signatory on the Kurigram Textile Mill lease agreement (January 26, 2025) and listed on the official BTMC officer directory; appointment date not published by MoPA in any source retrievable at verification date -- head_since set null. Earlier, Brig Gen Md Jakir Hossain was appointed chairman by MoPA order on August 19, 2024 (Rising BD, Daily Bangladesh); the succession from Jakir Hossain to Zahid Hasan is confirmed by evidence but the transition date is unverified. Three mills leased by January 2026: Valika Woolen Mills (Chittagong) to Loyal Tex Limited; Sylhet Textile Mills to Fast Icon Limited; Kurigram Textile Mill to Western Engineering Private Limited. Darwani Textile Mill (Nilphamari): operated 1980-1995 (25,056 German spindles, cost Tk 11.9 crore), closed 1995 citing losses, ran intermittently under contracts until 2022, now fully shut; PPP tender notice floated July 29 (year inferred as 2025 from TBS article context; PPPA site confirms project active). Dinajpur Textile Mill: 38 acres, 25,000 Indian spindles, operated 1978-2007 when shut after Tk 5 crore annual losses; included in same PPP tender round as Darwani. May 4, 2026 meeting: PM Tarique Rahman personally chaired, directed project approval streamlining and investor loan facilitation -- confirms highest political priority for BTMC's lease-out programme. Bangla name follows official BTMC portal spelling.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladesh_Textile_Mills_Corporation
- https://motj.gov.bd/site/page/9bdbf467-6538-42b9-bd25-4e9065aeec69/Bangladesh-Textile-Mills-Corporation
- https://btmc.gov.bd/site/page/fffa9c86-a117-495b-9127-1c2a49eac001/-
- https://btmc.gov.bd/site/view/officer_list/%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AC%E0%A7%83%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A6
- http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/act-details-378.html
- https://www.jagonews24.com/en/business/news/80070
- https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/btmc-leases-two-closed-mills-private-hands-989991
- https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/industry/btmc-keen-give-3-closed-mills-private-hands-746198
- https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/industry/govt-aims-ppp-revival-dinajpur-and-darwani-textile-mills-now-ruins-1216106
- https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/nilphamari-textile-mill-likely-reopen-within-3-months-state-minister-1410966
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/377315
- https://www.fibre2fashion.com/news/textile-news/bangladesh-to-hand-over-all-govt-textile-jute-mills-to-private-sector-310117-newsdetails.htm
- https://textileinsights.in/bangladesh-plans-revival-of-closed-textile-and-jute-mills/
- https://banglamirrornews.com/2026/05/04/204569/
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/government-affairs/409307/pm-holds-meeting-on-reopening-closed-factories
- https://www.newagebd.net/post/country/256245/4-soes-in-bangladesh-count-tk-28238cr-in-losses-in-28-years
- http://www.pppo.gov.bd/projects-development-project-of-darwani-textile-mills-ltd.php