Sony Sugar postpones plant closure
Sony Sugar has postponed the planned closure of its factory for
maintenance, a move that is likely to ease the current shortage of the
commodity. The factory had planned to close for annual maintenance next week but the management has pushed the closure to next April.
“We have decided not to close so that we can crush mature sugar cane that is in the fields,” said the firm’s managing director Jane Odhiambo. Ms Odhiambo said the weather was favourable because it is not raining heavily. Torrential rains hinder the movement of tractors collecting cane from the farms. Most sugar millers normally close for maintenance during the long rains season in April, but because of financial constraints, most factories have had to extend their operations.
The millers were faced with financial challenges earlier in the
year and could not pay farmers and suppliers, forcing the regulator to
grant them up to Sh1.5 billion to pay farmers. Mumias
and West Kenya factories, which are major players in the sugar
industry, have closed for 45 days to service the plants. Also closed for
maintenance are Kibos and Soin factories. Sony has capacity to crush 3,000 tonnes per day and it is currently crushing an average of 2,300 tonnes daily.
The sugar directorate in its annual report listed Sony among the two sugar millers that have enough cane for production in this financial year, with the rest of the factories bracing for a shortage of the commodity.
The government has ordered the sector regulator to
urgently licence importers so that they can bring in 14,000 tonnes of
sugar to curb the deficit, amid opposition from a section of
politicians who have threatened to move to court. Last year, 72
importers for direct consumption and 52 for industrial manufacturers
were registered by the regulator.
Sugar prices have gone up by eight per cent following the shortage. The price of two kilogrammes of packed sugar has gone up by Sh20 to sell at Sh250 from Sh230 early this month, while millers are selling a 50-kilogramme bag at Sh4,900 from Sh3,200 last month.
The country suffers from an annual sugar deficit, importing 200,000 tonnes from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa to bridge the shortage. Of the required 700,000 tonnes annual consumption, only 500,000 tonnes is produced locally.
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