GAWU calls on GuySuco to address issues impacting production

The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) is calling on the management of the sugar industry to address agricultural issues which impact annual sugar production.

The union’s General Council made the call at a meeting on Saturday last where members were elected to serve on the council and sub-committees.

According to a release issued by GAWU, the Board of Directors of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and its management need to address, ”especially those agricultural issues which fetter a quantitative yearly level of sugar production in keeping with the corporation’s factory capacities and its present human and other resources”.

The union hailed the positive performance of the sugar industry over the past few weeks, noting that last week, the highest weekly sugar production for months was attained as the industry declared a production of 9,369 tonnes of sugar.

Meantime, GAWU expressed satisfaction over the “unexpectedly positive performance” of the Skeldon Factory over the last four weeks. It noted however, that some crucial remedial works to the factory and its accessory components have not yet been undertaken.

Last week, the sugar production realized at Skeldon was 2,481 tonnes, the highest since the commissioning of the factory in August, 2009.

The factory, which was unveiled as a major boost to the industry has been plagued by problems ever since it was commissioned. At the same time, the industry has seen production dwindle each year, with this year experiencing a new low of approximately 71,000 tonnes of sugar for the first crop.

In April this year, GuySuCo announced that the factory was set to undergo major rehabilitation in order to have it fully operational.

This included the redesigning and re-engineering of several aspects of the facility and GuySuCo has been working with South African firm, Bosch Group of Companies to remedy the problems at the facility. Such work is ongoing and while the factory continues to operate, reports are that the problems may not be fixed until the first quarter of 2013.