The Tribune

By FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamian Contractors Association’s president yesterday warned that price hikes of up to 30 percent for aggregate materials, such as sand, and growing shortages of limestone fill are placing mounting pressure on construction with little sign that cost pressures will ease soon.

Leonard Sands told Tribune Business that the prices of sand, rock, fill and other bulk construction materials have climbed sharply in recent months, rising by up to 30 percent as supply becomes more constrained.

“Aggregates are going up every month. The price of sand, the price of bulk materials - sand, rock, fill - that’s all seen at least a 20 percent to 30 percent price increase in the last quarter, and it’s increasingly harder to get bulk materials for construction,” said Mr Sands.

He warned that dwindling access to limestone fill could eventually create a serious challenge for the sector.

“At some point in time, there’s going to come a place where you cannot get limestone fill. I don’t know how the construction sector is going to be able to deal with that,” said Mr Sands. “There are fewer and fewer pits that are able to produce and supply that material, and it makes the cost go up because it’s scarce.”

Mr Sands argued that higher material prices, combined with global economic pressures, will continue driving up construction costs across The Bahamas.

“It will make your cost of construction go up, which we will not be able to accommodate for, and couple that with the challenges happening in the global environment, construction prices won’t be going down,” he added.

The BCA president’s comments came after the Government’s Speech from the Throne pledged to complete and enforce an updated Bahamas Building Code as part of wider national resilience and disaster preparedness reforms.

However, Mr Sands said long-standing concerns over industry regulation and oversight remain unresolved.

“I have not seen the proposals for the revised building codes, so I can’t speak to that, but I can say that until the [Construction Contractors] Board is formed to give proper oversight, whatever calamities are happening in the construction sector will remain,” he said.

The Bahamian Contractors Association and other industry stakeholders have for years pushed for the establishment of the Construction Contractors Board as the last step in the legel process to regulate the industry, improve accountability and strengthen standards across the sector.

Industry groups have previously argued that the absence of formal self-regulation leaves the industry vulnerable to poor workmanship, disputes and insufficient oversight.

Mr Sands voiced frustration over what he described as repeated delays by successive administrations in advancing the reforms. “This is continuous. Every single time you meet them, they keep promising, but when do you think they are no longer serious and you’re not going to commit any of your time to hearing whatever they have to say?” he said.

“For us, it’s been 20 years and several governments, but with this government, five long years, and even a promise from the Prime Minister back in August.”

Despite his frustration, Mr Sands said establishing the Board would still ultimately benefit both the industry and the wider public. “If it happens, it’d be good for the community. If it doesn’t happen, I certainly don’t want to hear anybody else complain about it. The only people who suffer are the Bahamian people. That is the problem,” he added.