SPREADING SALT CONTRACT - UPDATE FROM PEACOCK SALT (FEBRUARY 2010)

Peacock Salt, Scotland Excel’s contracted supplier of spreading salt (for playgrounds and pathways), have informed us that there is a shortage of bagged spreading salt due to the availability of the salt across Europe.

We have all seen the images from across the UK and listened to news reports of Councils being unable to secure salt supplies for gritting our highways. This situation has triggered a coordinated response by both Central Government and the Scottish Executive with the formation of a national body called the Salt Cell. The object of this body is to allocate salt to those Councils and Highway agencies that are running at critically low stock levels. This coordinated approach is now controlling both imported stock as well as that currently being mined in the UK.

As a result there is now a shortage of salt for bagging and we have been advised that any new orders placed now are unlikely to be satisfied until the middle of March 2010. It is not possible to prioritise new orders for prompt delivery and Peacock Salt are currently allocating on the basis of the oldest outstanding orders on their system. 

Note - this contract is restricted to the following Councils: Angus, Argyll & Bute, Comhairle nan Eilean, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, Renfrewshire, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire; and Associate Member organisations that joined before 2007.

(Published 17 February 2010 - for further information please contact the Scotland Excel HelpLine on 0845 606 8726)