Housing and environment executive councillor S Sundarajoo (PH-Perai) said there had been a hike in the state’s housing construction costs due to the shutdown of some quarries.

He also said that housing developers have to buy quarry products from Ipoh, Perak, incurring expensive transportation costs.

“As the environment exco, (I am) studying ways to reopen these quarries to supply quarry products that can help reduce housing construction costs in Penang,” Sundarajoo told the assembly.

He was responding to a supplementary question from Zulkefli Bakar (PN-Penanti) on how the state government would be able to build affordable housing projects in the state priced at RM100,000 given the increasing price of construction materials.

Penang currently has nine permanent quarries: seven on the mainland and two on the island.

Earlier, Sundarajoo told the assembly that the state government is studying the introduction of a new affordable housing category, namely the B2 housing category, priced at RM100,000.

He said these housing projects would cater to newly employed and newly married youth with salaries ranging from RM3,500 to RM5,000.

At present, the state government only has Category A projects priced at RM42,000, Category B1 (RM72,500), C1 (RM150,000), C2 (RM250,000) and C3 (RM300,000).

Sundarajoo also said that the increase in housing prices in Penang is on par with the increase in average household income in the country.

“The increase in (the national) average household income allows Penangites to own houses priced above median prices,” he said.

He was responding to state opposition leader Fauzi Yusoff (PN-Sungai Dua) who asked about housing prices in Penang – the second highest in Southeast Asia at an average of RM330,000, over the median price of RM234,072.