GuySuCo gains traction as harvesting begins at Rose Hall

Mar 15, 2018 News

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– $10M earmarked for Sunday’s restart of Enmore factory

Months after a major political battle with thousands of workers laid off in Berbice and Demerara and three estates closed, it appears that the bankrupt sugar industry is making some headway.
A new board is in place, with a full page advertisement in Kaieteur News yesterday naming nine of the board members, including Chairman, Colvin Heath-London.
Heath-London is also the head of the Special Purpose Unit (SPU), a department of the state-owned company, National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).
On Sunday last, harvesting began at the Rose Hall estate, East Berbice – one of the closed estates – with over 200 workers rehired, officials said. Also hired were around 40 Bell loaders, oxen handlers and mechanics.
Over 125 workers were working yesterday to harvest the cane which will be taken to the Albion factory for grinding.
The SPU is banking on re-opening three of the closed estates – Skeldon, Rose Hall and Enmore – to utilize millions of dollars in cane still in the ground.
Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), which depends on molasses for making its world-renowned El Dorado rums, is hoping that the estates can provide the by-product.
The Diamond-headquartered rum company has expressed alarm about the estates’ closures warning that its foreign markets and growth will be severely hampered unless it is assured of a stable molasses supply.
DDL itself will be playing a role in the re-opening of Enmore estate with canes on the ground there.
According to officials, the SPU has earmarked $10M for the restart of Enmore. Normally, it would take tens of millions to restart each factory for the crop.
Under the arrangement, DDL would put some money up front and take the molasses which is produced.
Reportedly, DDL has budgeted some $1B for the Enmore venture and other molasses purchases for this crop.
The arrangements for the cane harvesting will be for this crop and is a way of keeping the factories operational until buyers have been chosen.
Currently, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, an international audit firm, is working to value the estates of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo). The valuations are expected to be completed in a few months. There have been over 70 expressions of interest in managing the closed estates.
Heath-London, a Guyanese financial consultant who is based in Jamaica, and experienced in sugar and a number of multibillion-dollar deals in the region, was hired last year by the Government to oversee the divestment and privatization of GuySuCo.
Already, GuySuCo’s shares has been vested in NICIL with Cabinet last month also green-lighting Heath-London as Chairman of the corporation.
Government had expressed dissatisfaction with the previous board, under Professor Clive Thomas, especially with the manner in which the workers of Skeldon, Rose Hall and Enmore, were given redundancy letters.
Cabinet was not informed of the decisions which impacted over 4,000 workers.
Already, the new GuySuCo board has been working with a number of structural changes made.
The financial portfolio has been removed from Chief Executive Officer (ag) Paul Bhim, and the Human Resources Manager sent home.
Management workers of a smaller-sized GuySuCo have been meeting with the new Chairman expressing concerns.
“It is our conviction that the installation of the new board has created an atmosphere of stability for the industry. The members of the new board bring a combination of decades of industry experience, broad-based business, management and finance experience, as well as innovation,” a senior official from GuySuCo said yesterday.
The other members of the new GuySuCo board include environmentalist, Annette Arjoon-Martins; George Jervis, a Ministry of Agriculture official; Rosh Khan, a digital marketing executive; Attorney-at-law Arianne McLean; long time GuySuCo manager, Vishnu Panday; Verna Adrian, a financial analyst; contractor Komal Singh and Fritz McLean, a mathematician.
Health-London’s tasks would not be easy. There are problems with procurement, with GuySuCo saddled with billions of dollars in useless spares and equipment.
Already, GuySuCo’s management committees from the various estates have met with the new chairman.
“We believe that Mr. Heath-London’s appointment is a decision well made, but we are not to think it will be an easy task to overturn what has been decades of downhill. He is experienced and we are already seeing some changes,” an official of the Management Committee said.
The committee of three-estate Guyana comprises managers from Albion, Blairmont and Uitvlugt.
SPU has been meeting with the two unions with regards to workers.
The industry has been a bone of contention, with the Coalition Government insisting that years of losses and inefficiency make it impossible for any administration to continue to bailout GuySuCo. Over $32B was plunged into the industry over the last three years, with little to show except for a decline in production.

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