Fiji Sugar Corporation’s Labasa sugar mill is showing better performance compared to the other two mills in Viti Levu, particularly regarding operational issues like mill downtime. This was confirmed by Charan Jeath Singh, the Minister for Sugar Industry, during his recent visit to Labasa.
So far this season, the Labasa Mill has processed 352,000 tonnes of cane, and it is projected to crush between 600,000 and 650,000 tonnes by the end of the season. Singh noted that there have already been two shipments of sugar and one shipment of molasses from the Labasa Mill, with another sugar shipment and a molasses shipment expected before year-end.
He stated that the three mills combined are anticipated to crush about $1.6 million worth of cane this season. The current cane to sugar ratio for the Labasa Mill stands at eight percent, while for Lautoka and Ba Mills, it ranges from nine to ten percent. This suggests that Fiji should be producing around 150,000 tonnes of sugar, resulting in gross sales proceeds of approximately $150 million.
Singh also mentioned that the Ba and Lautoka mills faced various issues, such as boiler malfunctions, which have caused delays for drivers. He emphasized that the mills sometimes need to stop operations when there is insufficient cane supply, explaining that having an adequate supply is essential to avoid costly operations.