Some members of the Trinidadian business community are skeptical about the TCL Group’s “monopoly” on their cement market and they favour the removal of the Common External Tariff (CET) to permit more options. But TCL Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Rollin Bertrand says the company does not have a monopoly and is urging that businessmen consider the CET a long-term investment in regional development.
During a recent trip, a team of local journalists interviewed a few Couva-based clients of the Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL) and they shared their views on the company’s service. Derek Dindial, General Manager of Dindial’s Central Hardware Ltd, has been selling cement for over 30 years. During this time, he has been regularly selling the TCL brand of cement, which he says is of a very high quality. According to him, customers are clearly satisfied with the product since he receives few complaints from them. But he feels that the cost of purchasing the cement from TCL is a bit high and says that this is because the company has a “monopoly” on the market. A few years ago when another brand of cement was being imported into the country, he related, TCL reduced the price of its cement. He thinks that the current price could be reduced and says that he has raised the issue with various sales personnel but there has been no reduction in the price since. Stabroek News was told that the cost for a bag of cement from TLC is currently about TT$43..
Dindial believes that the “monopoly” which the company has on the market is “a bad thing” since customers are being robbed of the more competition in terms of prices and services provided. Consequently, Dindial is in favour of cement imports sans CET. He says, that “once there is a little competition on the market, it is better at the end of the day for the customer down the road.”
Overall Dindial feels that the quality of service provided by the TCL Group is good but believes that this can also be improved.
Another businessman said the quality of cement produced by TCL is very good and that the service is excellent. He said that the plant supplied sufficient cement and that there was not an occasion when he could not get cement when in need. His only concern was the price of the cement, which he said was a bit costly. He added that this was only expected since the company is ‘monopolising’ the market.
He said previously when another brand of cement was available on the market, he purchased it because it was cheaper, but the quality was inferior to that produced by TCL. When asked about the removal of the CET on cement, the businessman said that as a Trinidadian, he would not support its removal since it would result in the loss of jobs for several persons. However, from a business perspective he said he would be in favour since it would provide options. He added that if he could find similar quality cement at a cheaper price, he would pursue the option.
‘An investment’
In response to the concerns raised by the businessmen, Bertrand said that TCL did not have a monopoly on the market since the businessmen were free to import. “Fifteen percent CET does not create a monopoly,” he said, while stating that the CET charged on a bag of cement would cost only a few cents.
The Group CEO suggested that one of the reasons why the brand is so popular in Trinidad is because of the economical cost of the product. He stated that if the price was not competitive, there surely would have been an influx of other brands on the country’s market.
Regarding the support shown by some businessmen for the removal of CET on cement, Bertrand said that “businessmen and traders often have a very short look on life” during which they fail to take into context the importance of long-term investments. He said that if these businessmen and traders had their way, the region would only be “buying” all the time and not be developing their own industries.
President Bharrat Jagdeo has been calling for the removal of CET on cement, saying that it is an issue the Heads of Government had previously reached a consensus on. During a recent press conference Jagdeo said: “we have argued that the …CET should be removed from cement, based on an earlier decision of Heads, that all internationally competitive goods should not be protected by the CET and oil and cement were listed as two, so we’re are hoping that that would happen.”
The TCL Group had accused the Guyana Government of breaching the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas by unilaterally suspending the CET on cement imported from countries outside Caricom and was later granted leave to sue the government after approaching the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). The court in its ruling on August 20, 2009 held the view that the company is entitled to the benefit of having the CET maintained. The CCJ later ruled that Guyana restore the tariff within 28 days, stating that without the coercive order there would be grave consequences for the rule of law in the single market – a directive to which the government adhered.
