Saturday, June 14, 2008

SATURDAY-14 JUNE 2008- RISING COST NO REASON TO ABANDON PROJECTS



Rising cost no reason to abandon projects


Govt to be accommodative to contractors: Minister



KOTA KINABALU:



Minister of Infrastructure Development Datuk Raymond Tan said the Government will be accommodating to contractors who are affected by the rising prices of building materials and fuels. “The State Government has decided to be accommodative towards contractors affected by the rise in the prices,” he said at a press conference yesterday after attending the Associate Consultant Engineers of Malaysia luncheon. Tan stressed however that the rising cost cannot be a reason to abandon Government projects. “I do not want any abandoned projects. I believe some of the projects that have been completed on schedule or ahead of schedule, or are near completion are not or little affected,” he said. “That is why I have advised all contractors to complete their projects on schedule or ahead of schedule to avoid any trouble in the future. “The Government projects should not be delayed too long, as if you delay too long, it would effect the cost structure. The longer it takes, the higher the cost would be, and at the end of the day, they cannot carry out the work.” Raymond said they are very serious about the rising cost problem and would consider giving allowance for the ongoing projects and also for those who have been awarded projects. “We understand that some of the projects are affected by the higher material and fuel prices and those that involve transportation of materials; we will study the projects individually and do a reasonable adjustment,” he said. Tan said he hopes all contractors will in future strive to complete their projects on schedule to avoid facing the problem like now. He said consideration to give allowance will be done on a case by case basis, and not all of the projects will be given additional allowance. “It will be based on many major considerations,” he said.