Punt dumper for Albion will not add any significant benefit to factory output

Dear Editor,

Guysuco has reportedly committed $400M to change the punt loading system at Albion, shifting from chain slinging to punt dumping. Guysuco wants to replace the sling with a punt dumper. Is this an efficient use of the money?

No sugar producing country uses punt dumpers. Guysuco should examine data on both systems before making a decision. There seems to be a deficit of knowledge on sugar production including on punt dumping and slings as well as on agronomy.

There are advantages and disadvantages of each method of loading the cane. Suffice it to say that slings are more cost effective and advantageous for Albion. It has been working well and as such no need to change it at this time!

The problem at Albion and all the estates is not loading cane but producing cane and efficiently getting it to the factory.  There is not enough cane to feed Albion or any of the factories. That is why production for last year was only 88K tons of sugar and the projected production for the coming year is 97K tons out of a potential 150K tons, a shortfall of some 53K tons which would have generated an additional G$5B income. Isn’t it wise to spend the $400M on the fields in order to ramp up cultivation so as to earn the extra $5 Billions?

Data must drive the punt dumper decision? How would a punt dumper benefit Albion and by extension Guysuco. Here are the facts: A punt dumper at Skeldon and the other two estates uploads 110 tons per hour. Albion slings can upload 160 tons per hour. Which is more efficient?

The CEO reportedly stated that the punt dumper at Albion will upload 168 tons per hour. So $400M is being spent to increase the load by 8 tons. It is not possible to upload 168 tons as the system does not allow for it.  Right now, the other estates are having difficulty in increasing upload to 120 tons per hour. How will Albion do 168 tons?

In the punt dumping system, if there is a hiccup, punt dumping is stopped and all the punts are stuck in the canal until the system is fixed. Empty punts are not available to be released back to the fields.  In the sling system, if there is a hiccup, the punt cane is loaded onto a dock/bin yard area for storage and the punts are released back to the fields.

So the punt dumper for Albion will not add any significant benefit to factory production or efficiency of loading cane unto punts in the fields.

Clearly, a punt dumper will not lead to increased sugar production. Sugar can only be improved with scientific agricultural techniques and skilled, experienced management.

When the industry makes very bad decisions, it becomes very costly. In this case, the bad decision is expending $400M that will not bring benefits. Worse, production will decline substantially; Guysuco will lose at least $1B a year from the punt dumper. So instead of increasing revenues, Guysuco will lose money, over two times of what it would have invested in the punt dumper.  When will Guysuco executives stop making bad decisions?

With good competent management at Guysuco and scientific intervention of cane planting, sound agronomic practices, that $400M at Albion will increase production and the industry will improve its chance of reaching 150K tons of sugar with an additional $5B in income. That $5B additional revenues will help to completely transform the industry making it more efficient, reducing tons cane/tons sugar ratio (TCTS), creating more jobs, and so many other benefits.

Yours truly,

Dharmendra Lalji