Sand and granite importers will need to get licences

Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 24 Mar 09;

PARLIAMENT yesterday passed the Building and Construction Authority (Amendment) Bill requiring all importers to obtain a licence before they can supply sand and granite to Singapore's construction industry.

The move comes two years after Singapore's 'sand crisis' of early 2007 when Indonesia abruptly banned all land sand exports to the city state - causing building activity to almost grind to a halt and sand prices to treble at one point.

During the second reading of the Bill yesterday, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said the scheme would ensure imported materials met high standards and help safeguard supplies.

'The sudden disruption of concreting sand and granite supplies in 2007 demonstrated the significant impact that such a disruption could have on our construction industry,' he said.

As Singapore imports most of its construction materials, it was important to ensure that the supply was 'resilient, thus minimising the possibility of any disruption to construction work', he said.

The Bill empowers BCA to license importers and allows it to revoke licences under certain circumstances.

Initially, the scheme will apply to the imports of concreting sand and granite for building, street or railway work in Singapore. Existing importers will be given six months to apply for a licence, which will be valid for up to 24 months and be renewable.

The Bill will also allow BCA to enforce existing test requirements so materials meet required standards.

Importers have to submit a 'business continuity plan' that puts in place measures to mitigate any supply disruption.

Mindful of the current economic conditions, importers will have a lead-time of at least 18 months to comply with this requirement. Licence and import permit fees will be waived for the first year of implementation.

Without a permit, licensees are prohibited from importing construction materials and those that do will be liable to a fine of up to $500,000, a two-year jail sentence, or both.

The severe penalties are there to act as a strong deterrent, said Mr Mah, given that unlicensed businesses importing poor quality materials could endanger public safety.

Mr Simon Lee, executive director of the Singapore Contractors Association, told The Straits Times that the new Bill was a 'good thing for the bigger picture'.

'This is an effort to diversify our supply sources, as we were heavily reliant on one source before,' he added.

Although the National Development Minister insisted there would be no additional cost burden for industry - since the requirements were 'already imposed administratively' - Mr Lee felt increased regulation was going to make doing business slightly more expensive.