Vital to GuySuCo’s return to profitability, Albion packaging plant planned for end of 2023

By the end of 2023, the new state-of-the-art packaging plant at Albion, Berbice should be operational, helping to usher in the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo)’s sought-after return to profitability.

This is according to GuySuCo’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sasenarine Singh, who told the News Room that the creation of this packaging plant is part of the corporation’s five-year strategic development plan.

Packaged sugar, the CEO explained, carries a higher cost and is a “better value for money.”

As such, the corporation is gradually shifting its production towards more packaging.

And with this gradual shift, a large packaging plant becomes necessary in the shortest possible time. Resultantly, works are afoot for the Albion plant to be up and running by the end of next year.

A sooner opening of the plant has been hampered by supply chain challenges constraining the construction and acquisition of the much-needed equipment, the CEO explained.

He, however, noted, “We have factored all of that into our modelling and we are hoping that we can take that into the arsenal of tool that we have to deliver better value.

“And the finer objective is bring GuySuCo closer to cash neutrality to the point where we won’t be a drain on the treasury after 2025.”

At a press conference in March, President Dr. Irfaan Ali stated that the government plans to consolidate sugar production in the Berbice county, hoping to create more jobs.

In so doing, the government has greenlighted the creation of a machine shop and pipe yard at the Enmore packaging plant; that plant is now being shifted to Albion.

Moving the plant there, the President explained then, will allow more jobs to be created in that region as new workers will be needed to man the plant. Additionally, two extra packaging lines – to boost the amount of sugar packaged – should be added to the Albion plant, thereby increasing the number of workers needed.

Already, two packaging plants have already been procured from the United Kingdom (UK); these plants are expected to transport sugar from the factory straight onto the packaging line.