28 Mar 2016

Fiji sugar mill stays out of action

3:31 pm on 28 March 2016
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Photo: RNZ

The Fiji Sugar Corporation says the Penang sugar mill in Rakiraki will not be ready for this season, starting in August, because of the impact of Cyclone Winston.

The Corporation's chair, Abdul Khan, told FBC News that it had put in place a strategy to build a syrup mill in Penang to be ready by next year.

He said as rebuilding the Penang mill would have been very costly, there was an advantage to opt for a modern and more high efficient mill.

Mr Khan said farmers around the area would have to take their sugarcane to the Rarawai Mill in Ba for crushing.

He said the industry suffered more than $US70 million in losses because of the cyclone.