An application has been made for a further suspension of the Common External Tariff (CET) on 170,000 tonnes of cement to be imported into Jamaica.

Last year, permission was granted for the suspension of the tariff for the importation of 240,000 tonnes.

The Industry, Investment and Commerce Ministry says the suspension which would have expired on September 9 has been extended for another year.

Industry Minister Karl Samuda who made the announcement Tuesday morning said the domestic market for the next year is expected to be in the region of 850,000 tonnes and that the request for suspension of CET on the 170,000 tonnes of the imported cement represents 20% of the total demand.

Mr. Samuda told journalists that the decision has created a debate between local producers, Caribbean Cement Company and the importing community.

However, according to him, the decision was made based on a number of factors in including the contributions made by key stakeholders, the Masterbuilders Association, the Hardware Merchants Association, the importers and the cement company itself.

"We feel that at this stage, there is not sufficient storage capacity to give us the kind of security that we need to ensure that the construction industry is never short of this vital product," he said.

Avoiding a shortage

The Minister added that the country does not want a repeat of what transpired about a year ago.  

"At a time like this when we are seeking to expand our infrastructural requirements, we are not in a position to take the kind of risk that would lead to the sort of shortages that were in existence about a year and a half ago," said Mr. Samuda.

The CET was imposed in September 2004 after Caribbean Cement Company filed a complaint with the Anti-Dumping and Subsidies Commission.

The company claimed that it was being affected by the dumping of cheap cement in Jamaica.

The tariff was lifted in 2006 by the then Government in the wake of production problems at Caribbean Cement and again in 2008 by the new administration.

The Caribbean Court of Justice recently ruled that this action, which was authorized by CARICOM, was not in breach of the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, which governs such activities within the regional trading bloc.