Cement prices soar in provinces
Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung
The cement shortage in Lampung and Banten provinces, triggered by mechanical problems at the PT Semen Baturaja cement factory in South Sumatra, has propelled the price of the commodity upward.
A sack of cement, which usually sells for Rp 27,000 (US$3), now costs Rp 36,000, or even as much as Rp 40,000 in several areas in Lampung.
Technical problems at Semen Baturaja halted production for 10 days, but the machines were fixed and have been running normally since Saturday.
However, distributors had run out of cement stock and market prices remain high, due to the time it takes to deliver new stock from the Baturaja factory in Panjang district, Bandarlampung.
Baturaja cement is more easily found compared to other brands in Lampung and Banten because of the factory's proximity, but the shortage continues in the two provinces.
Baturaja cement is the leading brand in the two provinces.
A Baturaja cement distributor in Telukbetung, Bandarlampung, A Ling, said he still had no cement stock in his warehouse as of Monday. He said his company trucks had been queuing for three days at the factory, but were yet to receive their supply quota.
A Ling also said he was confused about how much he should charge for the new stock, as the wholesale price listed on the delivery order had surged to Rp 33,000 per sack.
A cement distributor in West Lampung, Syarifudin, 40, said he had to buy cement at Rp 33,000 a sack, and was thus forced to sell it for Rp 36,000 to Rp 38,000 to make a reasonable profit.
He said the high manufacturer's price had pushed up cement prices to between Rp 39,000 and Rp 40,000 per sack in remote areas.
Meanwhile, a number of construction shops in Tanjungkarang and Telukbetung are selling cement at Rp 35,000 to Rp 37,000 per sack.
The shops' owners said they had to raise prices because their warehouses had emptied of stock, and because they had to queue for a longer time and pay a higher price for cement supplies.
"If we didn't raise our prices, we would suffer a bigger loss if the price of cement suddenly dropped," said Along, 50, owner of Along Jaya hardware store in Telukbetung.
A director of a cement distributor, Sony Aswan, said her company had completely run out of cement stock. "We usually get 10 truckloads of 320 sacks each. Our stock of cement has been completely exhausted for the past 10 days," she said.
She added that customers were constantly angry and accused distributors of hoarding cement to raise the prices. "Actually, we are facing difficulties in obtaining cement," she said.
The construction sector has also been affected by the shortage. For example, construction on a housing estate in Beringin Raya, West Tanjungkarang, was halted two days ago due to the cement shortage.
"We will wait until supplies and prices are normal. If we buy cement at a high price, we are afraid the price of the houses will be higher and the products less saleable," said Aminudin, a housing contractor.
The concern was echoed by Antony, 46, a contractor of a number of shop-houses in Bandarlampung, who said he was forced to stop construction activities temporarily in Central Lampung and Metro.
"The availability of cement is hard to assess right now. Even if there is a supply, the price will be very high. We have to stop the project indefinitely. We feel sorry for the construction workers because the Ramadhan fasting month is just around the corner, and then the Idul Fitri holiday. Where will they get the money to celebrate Idul Fitri?" he said.