GuySuCo today voiced concern over strike action by sugar workers saying delayed payment of the Annual Production Incentive was due in part to the difficulty in securing working capital.
A statement issued today by the corporation said:
“GuySuCo has noted with concern the strike action taken by some workers over the delayed payment of the Annual Production Incentive which will now be paid on March 16th. This delay in the payment of the API is due to two main reasons:
* The late start of the 1st crop 2012
* The inability to obtain working capital from a foreign bank which has not only affected the payment of the API but has also resulted in the Corporation lagging way behind in its payments to creditors.
“The Corporation’s short term debt currently totals $8,000M and comprises amounts owing to the local banks ($4,100M), creditors ($3,200M) and advances from customers ($700M). This is a significant amount owing and the Corporation is finding it very difficult to source additional short term financing to meet its working capital requirements.
“As such, an improvement in the Corporation’s financial position is very much dependent on producing sugar and then receiving cash from the sale of that sugar. This has not been possible so far due to sugar production being way below the estimate for the crop to date.
“We therefore urge all workers to bear with the Corporation during the difficult financial period it is experiencing and wish to assure them that we are putting measures in place to ensure that the Annual Production Incentive is paid on March 16th.”
