SINGAPORE - There have been no significant further disruptions to the supply of construction materials arising from thethus far, and the progress of HDB Build-To-Order projects has not been affected,
SINGAPORE - There have been no significant further disruptions to the supply of construction materials arising from thethus far, and the progress of HDB Build-To-Order projects has not been affected, said Minister for National Development Desmond Lee.
Mr Lee was responding via written reply on Tuesday to a parliamentary question from Mr Gan Thiam Poh asking what measures had been put in place to prevent delays in the construction of Housing Board flats as a result of the increase in cost of building materials arising from supply chain disruptions, and the ongoing geopolitical crisis. While the prices of steel rebars and ready-mix concrete have increased by about 17 per cent and 7 per cent respectively, Mr Lee said that HDB has worked with its contractors to"enhance their existing stockpiles of building materials by procuring them in advance to mitigate potential disruptions". "HDB is also closely monitoring the prices of the construction materials and has worked hard to strengthen the resilience of our public housing programme," he added. Mr Lee said HDB has provided extensive assistance to help contractors complete ongoing BTO projects in a timely manner, without affecting safety and quality. Among the assistance measures is the extension of the period of protection against steel price fluctuations, and supplying contractors with more concreting materials at protected prices. This is to help with the higher cost of materials. As for manpower shortages, HDB has worked with firms to safely recruit workers from various countries, and co-shared the cost of bringing in migrant workers.extent of delays on their flats as a result of factors such as the Covid-19 pandemic, tightened border controls for foreign workers and supply chain disruptions. Currently, the median waiting times of projects launched in 2020 and 2021 - after factoring in delays due to the pandemic - are about 4.5 years and 3.8 years respectively. On average, the waiting time for the 17 BTO projects completed in 2021 was 4.3 years, where seven developments faced delays of six months or less, while the longest delay was about 11 months. "For ongoing projects, we expect that most flat buyers will be able to move into their new homes within four to five years after booking their flats, barring any unforeseen circumstances," said Mr Lee. He also noted that with the pandemic situation stabilising, the construction industry has started to show some signs of improvement. "Nonetheless, with new uncertainties such as the ongoing geopolitical crisis and potential supply chain disruptions, HDB is closely monitoring the prices of key construction materials and remains ready to extend further assistance as necessary," he said.
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