Oral answer by MND on estimation of costs incurred due to the acceleration of BTO construction projects

Feb 14, 2023

Question No: 4222

Question by: Mr Murali Pillai

To ask the Minister for National Development in relation to the move to accelerate the development of on-going and future HDB BTO construction projects that have been announced to date
(a) whether HDB has or will be incurring acceleration costs for these projects; and
(b) if so, what is the estimated total amount of the acceleration costs that have or will be incurred and what percentage does it constitute in relation to the total development costs of the projects.

Answer:

          As the construction industry recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, HDB has made steady progress in delivering BTO projects to our homebuyers. In Jan 2023, we have reduced the proportion of BTO projects delayed beyond the Estimated Completion Date (ECD) from about 90% in 2021 to about 40%.

2.       HDB’s ongoing and future BTO construction projects that have been announced to date are planned based on the estimated completion dates indicated during the BTO launches. Notwithstanding efforts made to keep up the supply of BTO flats to meet the strong housing demand, HDB has been able to meet these completion dates without incurring acceleration costs.

3.       To reduce construction delays, HDB has been working closely with our contractors and agency partners to put in place extensive measures. These include sourcing for workers overseas for contractors to address manpower shortages, and streamlining processes to expedite approvals. Overall, these collective efforts have enabled HDB to deliver more homes to flat buyers thus far and minimise delays, without compromising safety and quality.

Issued by:    Ministry of National Development

Date         :   14 Feb 2023