The Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) has reported losses approaching $40 million due to the temporary closure of its Ba sugar mill, FSC Board Chairman Nitya Reddy said. The shutdown follows what he described as the largest fire in the country’s sugar industry in over 150 years, reports The Fiji Times.
“This is the biggest fire-related incident in the 150-year history of our industry,” Reddy said. “It surpasses the closures caused by the Penang mill, as well as the floods and droughts we have routinely faced.”
Reddy said FSC is working to meet the recommissioning deadline for the Ba mill, now set for the first week of December. “We have about 50 engineers working 15 to 20 hours a day. We are hopeful we can restart operations in the first week of December,” he added, noting that the timeline depends on sourcing critical equipment.
He described the financial impact as significant, pointing out that FSC has turned a profit only once in the past 25 years—a modest $2 million—and has largely relied on government support.
Reddy also denied claims of widespread layoffs at the mill. “All 521 employees who were working at Ba are still on our payroll,” he said. “Contrary to reports in Parliament last week, only 60 casual workers were laid off. All others remain employed.”
