Deep relationships are supporting Boustead's order book amid pandemic

THE Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted the energy and real estate businesses of Boustead Singapore, as it sends oil prices crashing and brings construction work to a standstill.

Even the opportunities created for the group's geospatial arm Esri Singapore come with a caveat. Demand has surged for the geographic information system (GIS) software it distributes, which is being used to map Covid-19 cases and monitor crowd density. But revenue gains have been limited as the company is distributing the software and providing services free of charge to many users under its principal's Disaster Response Programme (DRP).

Travel restrictions have made doing business and finding new work challenging too, said chairman and group chief executive Wong Fong Fui.