RIYADH, 26 May 2006 — The escalating demand for construction equipment in the Kingdom, together with supply bottlenecks, has created a situation in which projects tend to get delayed upsetting their schedule. In a joint interview with Arab News, Jonas Gardetun, regional director of Volvo Construction Equipment in Sweden, and Essam Al-Malik, general manager, Al-Rehab Equipment & Machinery Co. Ltd. (Central Region), said the situation was further compounded by the penalty clause in the contract and markup in steel prices by at least ten percent.
They were speaking after the Volvo Roadshow organized here recently to demonstrate the maneuverability of Volvo excavators and other construction equipment on Khurais Road here. A large gathering of invitees watched the giant vehicles in action.
Al-Malik said the construction boom here was feeding the demand for loaders, excavators, haulers and motor graders. There was a 100 percent increase in the Saudi market for construction equipment. As against 1,200 units imported in the Kingdom from Sweden last year, this year’s projection puts the number at 2,500.
“We registered a 20-30 percent rate of growth in our business. The growth potential is enormous. That’s why we shall be opening two more branches in due course-one in Jeddah next year at a cost of SR20 million and the other in the Eastern Province at a cost of SR14 million,” he observed.
Elaborating on his remarks, Mohammed Abdul Azeem, regional sales and marketing manager, said they were fully geared to meet the market demand, both in terms of sales and customer support.