RIYADH, 28 January — Road repairs currently cost the Ministry of Communications SR1.5 billion and the Riyadh Municipality 800 million annually. However, a Saudi-Canadian joint venture has introduced a low cost, quick and hi-technology solution to the problem of degrading road surfaces.
This was disclosed to Arab News by Fawaz Z. Al-Kaaki, vice chairman of Unitimp Enterprise Inc., who said the state-of-the-art technology was well received by senior officials from the Ministry of Communications, Riyadh Municipality and the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs.
The market potential for the product is seen to be immense in the light of emerging needs of the existing network of roads and the planned expansion of feeder roads through the agricultural areas of the Kingdom. An outlay of SR5.8 billion has been allocated in the current budget for the transport and communications sector, which is expected to grow by three percent this year.
Unitimp Enterprise Inc. of Canada is owned by Saudi Plastic Factory, headed by Prince Hussam ibn Saud. Set up as a joint venture with the Matrex Company of Ontario (Canada), it is the sole agent for the distribution of high performance pavement patching material in the Gulf states, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.
The new joint venture is one of the four acquisitions of Saudi Plastic Factory which has invested over SR60 million in acquiring plastic factories in Riyadh, Jeddah, Egypt and Lebanon. Following the takeovers, SPF hopes to achieve a 20 percent growth rate this year, up from 10 percent last year.
Noting that heavy vehicles have been playing havoc with the Kingdom's road network, Al-Kaki said that according to one estimate a single large dump truck or tractor-trailer delivers a pavement pounding equal to that meted out by 3,000 cars.
"The cold patch technology that we have introduced cuts down the road maintenance costs by at least 30 percent. Moreover, it saves time and manpower, as the ready-to-use premix can be applied within minutes requiring no traffic closure or deviation of routes," the vice chairman said.
Al-Kaki said the road repair techniques currently in use do not provide any durable solution capable of withstanding climatic extremes or rutting caused by heavy-duty vehicles. The cold patch provides the answer, he added.
