The Fiji Sugar Corporation has restructured its debt after missing repayments on bonds totaling $15 million and $10 million owed to the Fiji National Provident Fund, which matured on September 30, 2019, and November 4, 2019, respectively. This situation was detailed in the 2023 FSC Annual Report, which was presented in Parliament in October.
To secure funding for its operational and capital needs, the FSC obtained a government-guaranteed loan of $50 million from the FNPF. The loan carries a 15-year term and is backed by a guarantee from the government. The report indicated that this guarantee was invoked, leading the government to assume responsibility for the loan, and a new 15-year repayment arrangement has been established between the FSC and the government.
Repayment of the loan is set to begin in January 2025, with the FSC scheduled to make two equal annual installments of $1.1 million. The report also pointed out that the total borrowings from the government amount to $173.8 million, accruing interest at a rate of five percent per year.
In line with the Loan Repayment Agreement dated July 15, 2015, the $173.8 million governmental loan has been restructured into a long-term unsecured optionally convertible loan. The Ministry of Economy retains the discretion to convert all or part of this loan into fully paid shares in the Fiji Sugar Corporation Limited.