CHAIRMAN of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Mr. Raj Singh has said the Skeldon Sugar Factory, at Corentyne, Berbice, is, currently, performing at its best since it was commissioned.

He said that is due, mostly, to improved conditions and good out of crop maintenance by the corporation’s engineers.
Singh added that all estates are performing well, at the moment, except for minor glitches that are normal after a maintenance programme.
He reported that other factories, Albion and Rose Hall, also in Berbice and Uitvlugt, West Coast Demerara, started production for the second crop in the first half of July, while Blairmont, West Bank Berbice and Enmore, East Coast Demerara, began in the second half.
However, Skeldon and Wales, West Bank Demerara, both had late starts on August 13 and September 18, respectively.
According to Singh, Skeldon began at that time because of previous bad weather and Wales due to the number three boiler being completely overhauled. The others, though, commenced after their routine out of crop maintenance was completed.
He said the first crop did not do as well as was hoped as a result of  some bad weather the country had been experiencing.
“The weather has been unkind to the sugar production process all of the first crop and the beginning of the second crop but this has improved since around September 13 and we are hoping it remains that way for the rest of the crop,” Singh said.
He disclosed that the export commitment to its main market, Europe, is 195,000 tonnes and that order is expected to be fulfilled.

Inputs
Singh pointed out that the cost of inputs also affects sugar production and the price of fuel has fluctuated during the period January to September 2012. The increase in September was 10.24 percent for gasolene and 13.51 percent for dieselene when compared to the prices in July.
In addition, the price of fertiliser rose by 20 percent; agrochemicals by 12 percent, steel by 18 percent and lumber by 26 percent.
Meanwhile, President of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), Mr. Komal Chand, among the key stakeholders, has stated that the revised target of 236,000 tonnes can be achieved, once all the other sectors involved do as they should.
He said GAWU is hopeful that the weather will continue to be good throughout the rest of the year, so as to not affect the harvesting of sugar cane.
“Once the weather prevails and there is enough cane, GuySuCo has assured GAWU that it will meet the target,” Chand said.
Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy has advised that this crop is one of the most successful second crops for GuySuCo, which should make up for the shortened first crop.
He said most people believe the first crop was a failure as it did not meet the target of 90,000 tonnes. But he insisted it was not that the corporation failed to meet the tonnage but the crop was shortened by more than four weeks because of constant rainfall.
“If, on a weekly basis, we could get around eight to ten thousand, it means, in the first crop, its thirty-two to forty thousand tones. But we cut off because we close down the estates. And we had no choice because of the rainy season,” Ramsammy explained.
He forecast, though, that GuySuCo expects to exceed 160,000 tonnes for this crop which will make it a very successful single crop.
The target for this crop is 166,000 tonnes and, to date, GuySuCo has achieved approximately 72,000 tonnes, Ramsammy revealed.

AMBITION
He said Guyana has ambition for value-added and it is hoped that more sugar will be packaged. For this purpose, the Blairmont packaging plant has been established, with a capacity of about 10,000 tonnes annually, which has been achieved for several years now.
The Enmore packaging plant has a capacity of 40,000 tonnes and  Ramsammy said it can, in fact, provide the amount but it has to have the amount of sugar to produce.
He said that target may not be met because the amount of sugar available also has to meet the global bulk obligations and only what is left over will be packaged.
“Enmore is functioning properly right now and all the sugar that the factory produces, at this time, is going towards the packaging plant for export purposes,” the Minister said.