The Fiji Sugar Corporation’s sugar mill in Labasa is performing better than the two mills in Viti Levu concerning operational issues, including mill downtime. This assessment was made by Charan Jeath Singh, the Minister for Sugar Industry, during a recent visit to Labasa.
So far this season, the Labasa Mill has processed 352,000 tonnes of sugarcane and is projected to reach a total of 600,000 to 650,000 tonnes. Singh noted that the Labasa Mill has already completed two shipments of sugar and one shipment of molasses, with more shipments anticipated before the year concludes.
He mentioned that the combined sugarcane crushing from all three mills is expected to total around 1.6 million tonnes this season. The current conversion rate from tonnes of cane to tonnes of sugar (TCTS) at the Labasa Mill is eight percent, while Lautoka and Ba Mills are operating at about nine to ten percent.
Given this TCTS rate, it is estimated that approximately 150,000 tonnes of sugar could be produced, which would generate around $150 million in sales revenue for Fiji. Singh also highlighted some challenges faced by the Ba and Lautoka mills, such as malfunctioning boilers leading to delays.
He explained that at times the mills must close due to insufficient cane supply, a concept that is often misunderstood. Adequate cane availability is essential for efficient mill operation to avoid incurring unnecessary costs.