The heavy investments in sugar industries that are taking place in Ethiopia will boost the nation’s sugar capacity to 1.58 Million Tons by the mid 2015, Walta Information Center (WIC) reported. The amount is five folds of the nation’s current output.
However, this is only 70 percent of what is projected in the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP). According to the GTP, 2.25 Million Tons of sugar was expected to be produced every year in Ethiopia.
The governmnet expects, Seven out of the ten sugar factories under constraction are expected to be completed by the end of the first phase of the GTP (mid 2015).
Amongs these projects, the first phase of Tendaho Sugar Factory, which have a capacity to crush 13,000 Tons of sugarcane per day, is expected to commence production as early as this month. And when the factory starts production at full capacity, it will have a total capacity to crush 26,000 Tons of Sugarcane, making it the “Biggest Sugar Factory in Ethiopia”, according to WIC.
Commenting on the Tendaho Sugar Facotry, Shiferaw Jarso, Director General of Ethiopian Sugar Corporation (ESC), said “Dry testing has been conducted and we expect the factory to begin crushing before the end of this month”.
Next to Tendaho lies Kuraz I Sugar Factory with the capacity of producing more than 1.9 Million Tons of Sugar in a year. Kuraz is expected to be completed by September 2014 and have a capacity of crushing 12,000 Tons of sugarcane.
The corpporation is also expecting the completion of Kessem Sugar Factory in the current year. Kessem has a plant with a capacity of producing 260,000 Tons of sugar.
“The project is going very well and it is on schedule. We are confident that the plant will be completed in November,” Shiferaw said.
Shiferaw further noted the two sugar projects in Tana Belese Sugar Development Project, with 12,000 tcd each will be finalized by the first month of 2015.
“Construction of the plant will commence in June [2014] and it is expected to be completed in 24 months”.
Currently Ethiopia produces 300,000 Tons of Sugar every year out of the 500,000 Tons demand. But when the entire sugar projects are finalized the country expects to have an estimated capacity of four Million tons per year.
Source: Walta
