Fate of sand importers hangs in the balance
Some hope to find new sources, others are prepared to shut down business
BARGES carrying thousands of tonnes of sand are unloaded every day at landing terminals in Pasir Ris and Tuas.
But in just over a week, this could grind to a halt as Indonesia’s ban on land sand exports kicks in after Feb 5.
After that date, the fate of the sand importers here - there are fewer than 10 of them - remains to be seen, but they are likely to be hit hard.
Some are already preparing for the worst.
The manager of Bee Huat Sand & Granite, Mr Steven Neo, said: ‘If there is no sand, our operations will cease.’
He added that it is still too early to say how badly the company will be hit, but the firm is ‘prepared’ to shut down its sand business and let go some 40 to 50 employees.
It is unclear whether these companies will have a role in selling or trading sand from the stockpile belonging to the Government, which will be released if necessary to meet any temporary shortage.
The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) is now looking into sourcing sand from other countries in the region.
Meanwhile, Mr Neo’s company is not just sitting around. While waiting for the Government to prepare the ground, it is making its own contacts with suppliers.
‘We don’t wait for the Government to give instructions. We approach companies and ask them to speak to the authorities there,’ he said.
The BCA is also meeting sand importers and explaining the situation to them to allay their concerns.
Singapore’s construction industry imports between six and eight million tonnes of sand a year, almost all of it from Indonesia.
In the longer term, the BCA hopes to wean the industry from its reliance on sand to make concrete for construction and get it to use steel in a bigger way instead.
Steel is now more common in high-rise buildings here.
If reliance on sand can be cut back by 60 to 70 per cent, these importers may end up with much less to work with.
Source : Straits Times - 26 Jan 2007
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