With grinding for the critical second crop about to commence GuySuCo has more than production numbers to focus on as the weather, a recent fire at the Skeldon factory and harvesting problems have hit the industry.
Revised estimates for the second crop put it at around 185,000 tonnes and based on current challenges there are reports that the corporation might be forced to revised that figure downwards; a shortfall was recorded during the first crop. A production target of 280,000 tonnes has been set for this year and the first crop output was recorded at 81,864 tonnes.
Chief Executive Officer (ag) Paul Bhim was out in the field yesterday and unavailable for comment, but the corporation’s Communications Officer, Romel Roopnarine was optimistic saying that grinding will begin despite the recent problems.
Bhim had pointed to an adequate cane supply being critical to the corporation’s operations and there were reports yesterday that harvesting has been poor so far for this crop due to the persistent rainy weather. Additionally, concerns have been raised about the sucrose content of the canes being reaped also because of the weather.
Information regarding a fire last weekend at the Skeldon factory has not been provided in any detail by the corporation. Roopnarine said the fire erupted in the bagasse plant at the factory which resulted in damage to a conveyor belt. He later told this newspaper that he had confirmed with Bhim that the fire was not maliciously set.
As to the impact of the blaze on the operations at the factory, he said the issues have been resolved and that grinding was expected to begin anytime. The fire, he said, happened on Saturday night and that the damaged conveyor belt had been replaced.
Sources close to the industry disclosed yesterday that welding activities were being conducted near the bagasse plant prior to the fire. It was reported that a spark might have caught something in the plant and the fire was ignited. However, the fire went undetected for a while because the welders had exited the premises.
It is unclear what kind of presence GuySuCo has at the bagasse plant but according to a source, no one knew the fire was burning slowly in the plant until sometime after. In the aftermath, the conveyor belt was damaged but was quickly replaced. The source noted that GuySuCo needs to strengthen its supervision systems to prevent occurrences such as the fire.
The source also pointed to the recent problems at the boiler where there was an explosion and resultant damage to both boilers. Bhim had told this newspaper that the corporation was still to determine what happened at the boiler, but he acknowledged there was a minor explosion. The investigation to ascertain what happened at the boiler is still ongoing, but one of the boilers remains in a state of disrepair while the other has been repaired.
Sources said that the equipment to repair one of the boilers has to be procured from overseas and that this is still being addressed. However, the one boiler can function provided that the factory is not grinding at capacity and since being commissioned almost a year now the Skeldon factory has not operated at capacity due to an inadequate cane supply in the industry. Currently, the one functioning boiler can operate at a reported maximum of 250 tonnes of cane per hour; the capacity at Skeldon is 350 tonnes per hour.
In an interview with this newspaper shortly after assuming the duties of acting CEO of the corporation, Bhim had said that cane cultivation was high on his agenda, noting that an adequate supply is what the industry needs to bounce back from a tough period. The corporation has increased its focus on land expansion, planting and tillage within the past year, according to Bhim, who said it is likely to result in a bumper harvest at the end of the second crop.
The poor first crop numbers were reflective of minimal rehabilitation work being done in the early period of last year in addition to arid El Nino conditions, Bhim noted. But even with an adequate supply the problems affecting Skeldon continue to impact on production; output has been low and the target of 280,000 tonnes for this year is looking more difficult.
