Plans are afoot to upgrade Albion Sugar Factory to facilitate the mechanisation of industry, according to Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha.
The minister further added that the entire system at Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is being mechanized. Currently, a packaging plant is being built at the Albion factory.
Mustapha noted that when the Peoples Progressive Party took office in 2020, the entire system was run down.
“Now we are trying to put systems in place change several parts and make the estates more modern. A lot of money has been expended over the last three years in this regard. “Over $20 billion has been spent to fix these factories and get them back in order.”
As it related to the Albion factory, Mustapha said a new punt dumper is required to enhance the capabilities of that factory.
“Albion is one of the factories that we are trying to mechanise as much as possible so that with the shortage of labour we can use the machine to cut and load the cane.”
Not giving a timeline, Mustapha said it is a work in progress at all four grinding sugar estates – Uitvlugt, Albion, Blairmont and, Rose Hall.
The upgrades of GuySuCo refer to it as mechanization, and will also include the way cane is planted so that it will allow for machines to harvest the cane if needed.
Additionally, GuySuCo has stated that it will reduce wastage of land by making broader beds which will also allow for machines to be able to harvest the canes.
Already, several acres of land that had vegetation were converted and are expected to be utilized for the development. “Several hectares we have already mechanized and that will be a continuous process,” Mustapha noted.
GuySuCo claims that under the new system using machined to plant canes, they can plant 100 times faster. The machines can 20 hectares of cane can be planted in 12 hours.
The mechanized planting paves the way for increased production at the Estate. Albion Estate is projecting that by 2026, it will reach its full potential of producing more than 50,000 tonnes of sugar annually.
Meanwhile, in early February, a fire at the Power House at Albion Sugar factory resulted in several major pieces of electrical infrastructure being destroyed. Those included: a four-megawatt generating control panel, 2.5-megawatt generating control panels, a 700-kilowatt low-voltage cap set control panel, a 3.3-kV transformer, a breaker, a section of the low-voltage bus bar, and several major sections of the circuitry.
Meanwhile, the agriculture minister pointed out that Cabinet has approved monies to purchase parts for the powerhouse at the Albion factory.
