The Trade and Industry Minister, Alan Kyerematen, says the new investor for the Komenda Sugar Factory should commence the implementation of its roadmap post COVID-19.
The factory is yet to resume full operations after being shut down for about three years despite the fanfare that heralded its opening.
A strategic investor, Park Agrotech, has since been selected to revive the factory after a technical audit by Price Waterhouse Coopers.
Answering a question in Parliament, the Trade and Industry Minister said the government’s ban on foreign travels coupled with border closures, has also affected the process of restoring the Komenda Sugar Factory.
“I am happy to inform this house that in June 2019, Park Afrotech Ghana Limited was approved by cabinet as the preferred strategic investor for the Komenda Sugar Factory. Park Afrotech Limited is a company incorporated and operating in Ghana in the agri business sector. It will be working with STM project limited, an Indian based company that has extensive experience in the management of sugar mills and plantations, both in India and other parts of the world. Mr. Speaker, following the approval by cabinet as required by commercial practice, the transactional advisors entered into final negotiations with a successful bidder with a bid to entering into a concession agreement for the operations of the Komenda Sugar Factory,” he said.
Government in 2014 secured a thirty five million dollars from an Indian Exim Bank facility to bring the Komenda Sugar Factory back to life after several years of inactivity.
The factory is to ensure sustainable development of sugarcane plantations and in turn, harness the continuous growth and smooth running of the facility.
In May 2016, it was revamped, but has since faced all manner of challenges. It was closed down in June 2016, barely a month after it was commissioned.
Later in November 2017, the government initiated processes to revive the operations of the factory.
Currently, Ghana’s annual sugar requirement is estimated at close to four hundred thousand tonnes and the factory is expected to produce value added by-products such as energy and alcohol to support industry.
It was expected to be producing about 1,250 tonnes of sugar each day.
The factory, at its full capacity, can in a year, produce 97% of the country’s sugar needs, representing 250,000 tons.