Cold room project case study in Bangladesh: Shrimp export freezing and 700-pallet frozen store, Khulna
Ageing plate freezers and an unreliable grid were limiting export volumes. The retrofit modernised freezing capacity while keeping the existing building.
A 700-pallet −30 to −40 °c blast / deep frozen facility in Bangladesh of roughly 3,300 m³, built with ammonia (r717) industrial plant, models at about USD 3,670,284 installed (USD 2,936,227–USD 4,771,369 planning range) and USD 692,652 a year to run, over a 58-week programme from brief to handover. Figures are indicative planning estimates from ColdMatch Group's country cost model — not a quotation.
A senior cold-chain specialist stays with your project from first brief to commissioning.
What was built, and for whom
Hot and humid — higher defrost energy and infiltration load
~1300 generator hours modelled per year
Local band 0.080–0.150 USD/kWh
Zones
- Plate and blast freezing to −35 °C core
- Frozen store −22 °C, 700 pallets
- Chilled processing and packing hall
What a project like this costs in Bangladesh
Derived from the same indicative country cost model used by the public ColdMatch calculators: local construction cost index, design ambient, humidity, grid reliability, diesel price and electricity tariff. Planning-grade estimates, never a quotation.
Planning range USD 2,936,227–USD 4,771,369
USD 1,112 per m³
61% of it is energy
332 kW average refrigeration load
| Envelope, plant, electrical and installation | USD 3,296,097 |
| Standby generation | USD 362,571 |
| Monitoring and alarms | USD 11,616 |
| Total installed | USD 3,670,284 |
| Grid electricity (2,908,418 kWh) | USD 319,926 |
| Standby diesel (102,724 litres) | USD 102,724 |
| Maintenance and spares | USD 99,832 |
| Operations labour (14 staff) | USD 166,600 |
| Monitoring and compliance | USD 3,570 |
| Total per year | USD 692,652 |
Running the same facility on legacy fixed-speed plant models at USD 798,314 a year — about USD 105,663 more, which is the efficiency decision this project turned on.
What made this project difficult in Bangladesh
These are the local realities that change the design, the price and the supplier shortlist.
- Long outages — generator autonomy is a design requirement
- Very humid climate raising defrost and infiltration load
- Importer audits on hygiene and cold-chain traceability
The decisions that shaped the result
- Ammonia plant refurbishment with new compressors rather than full replacement
- Generator sized for freezing plus store, with fuel storage for extended outages
- Batch freezing records tied to export documentation
Programme: about 58 weeks from brief to handover
Phases overlap in practice. This sequence shows where the schedule risk sits in this market.
- 1
Brief and feasibility
Weeks 1–3 · 3 weeksProduct, temperature, capacity, site status, electrical supply, budget band and timeline confirmed. ColdMatch reviews the brief and flags missing data before anyone is approached.
- 2
Concept design and RFQ preparation
Weeks 4–7 · 4 weeksZone layout, load estimate, system shortlist and a single bid form so every supplier quotes identical scope, exclusions and assumptions.
- 3
Supplier review and tendering
Weeks 8–13 · 6 weeksSuitable suppliers are approached only after internal approval, then proposals are normalised on scope, energy assumptions, spares, commissioning and warranty.
- 4
Enabling works and shutdown planning
Weeks 14–21 · 8 weeksCondition survey, tie-in plan and shutdown windows agreed with operations so production is not interrupted.
- 5
Equipment manufacture and delivery
Weeks 22–43 · 22 weeksPlant and panel manufacture plus extended shipping, customs clearance and inland transport — the schedule risk to watch in this market.
- 6
Installation and insulation
Weeks 44–53 · 10 weeksPanel erection, refrigeration pipework, electrical installation and controls.
- 7
Commissioning, pull-down and handover
Weeks 54–58 · 5 weeksLeak and pressure testing, staged pull-down, performance verification against the specified duty, operator training, spares handover and documentation.
What the project delivered
- Export freezing capacity increased without new civil works
- Outage-driven product risk removed from the operation
- Audit-ready freezing records per consignment
What buyers in this market should take from it
- Refurbishment can beat replacement when the building and vessels are sound — but demand a condition survey first
- Fuel storage autonomy is part of the refrigeration design, not a site detail
Tools and market data for Bangladesh
Change the capacity, temperature and system and the numbers above move. These tools use the same country model.
Cold storage project costs and timelines in Bangladesh
How ColdMatch Group works — independent B2B procurement and sourcing platform — ColdMatch Group is an independent B2B procurement and sourcing platform for industrial refrigeration, cold storage and cold-chain projects from USD $250K+, connecting buyers with qualified third-party suppliers, EPC contractors and independent financing providers.
Have a comparable project in Bangladesh?
Submit your product type, temperatures, capacity, site status, power situation, budget band and timeline. David and the ColdMatch team review the brief, structure the RFQ so every supplier quotes the same scope, and approach suitable suppliers only after internal approval.
This is a worked project example built from ColdMatch Group's indicative country cost model — local electricity tariff, design ambient, humidity, grid reliability and construction cost index. It is a planning-grade illustration, not a client transaction, an engineering design or a quotation. Supplier and manufacturer listings on this site are provided for research, transparency and discovery only. ColdMatch Group does not provide automatic buyer-supplier introductions. Every cold chain project request is reviewed manually by David / ColdMatch Group, and supplier introductions are made only after internal approval.
Supplier and manufacturer listings are provided for research, transparency and discovery only. ColdMatch Group does not provide automatic buyer-supplier introductions. Every cold chain project request is reviewed manually by David / ColdMatch Group, and supplier introductions are made only after internal approval.