Bermuda Cement Company workers called off their strike yesterday after the West End Development Company (Wedco) said a new lease was in the offing.

The news was welcomed by building firms after days of shortages and panic buying.

Mike Bierman, CEO of Bierman's concrete products, said: “It's a good start, hopefully we can get back to full operation after laying people off.”

He said it would be two days before his firm was back up to full speed.

BCC director Stella Winstanley said yesterday workers began bagging cement and putting it on pallets to be ready for a 7 a.m. opening this morning.

“We have received a letter from Wedco calling for a meeting for next Tuesday at 1 p.m.,” she said.

“And we have been advised, that, by Friday, we will be forwarded a draft of the lease for us to look at before the meeting.”

Mrs. Winstanley said plant staff had been happy with the news.

“We will be ready as soon as the trucks roll in,” she said.

And she said SAL and Bierman's have been supplied to enable the block plants to keep going.

Cement workers at BCC began the strike last Thursday in frustration about uncertainty over their jobs as Wedco had not renewed BCC's lease, which expires on December 31, 2005.

Late Friday afternoon, Wedco chairman, Lt. Col. David Burch announced that the quango had agreed to enter into new lease negotiations with BCC but then BCC said Wedco had not followed through with any communication and the strike continued.

Wedco had said the current lease of $48,000 is far too low while BCC balked when Wedco tried to jack it up to $400,000.

BCC want to reinvest in the plant which is in a poor state of repair.