Kenyans will go without sugar and other products from Mumias Sugar Company following the management’s decision to temporarily close the factory for maintenance.
Out-going Managing Director Coutts Otolo said the factory has been shut down due to worn out machines and inadequate power which have affected its optimal operations, reports The Standard. “We have decided to close the factory on a temporary basis so that we can carry out maintenance services. The factory has been performing poorly. The last time thorough maintenance of the machine was done in 2013,” said Mr Otolo.
The factory will reopen late next month. Mr Otolo said all sugar has been sold. “Our sugar will not be on the shelves for all this period. We do not have any stocks in our warehouse. Consumers and other businesspeople will have to bear with us,” he said.
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The factory has failed to perform to its optimal capacity as it has been crushing 2,000 tonnes of cane daily instead of the 7,000 tonnes. This is attributed to inadequate electricity as Kenya Power has disconnected its electricity supply to the company.
The factory has been unable to crush enough cane to produce its own bagasse that generates power for internal use. This has forced it to rely on generators that are unable to supply adequate power to the entire factory, causing poor performance.
One of the engineers in the processing unit said the factory faces many challenges as it lacks spare parts yet nearly all the machines are worn out. He said the factory’s diffuser and processor are in bad shape, leading to leakage on the juice meant for producing sugar.
“The factory does not have enough power to run its operations. The problem starts in the diffuser and the processor and due to lack of enough power, the machines are not able to crush to the cane to their optimal capacity,” said the engineer. “The juice in the process house leaks as waste after overflowing in the processor, which cannot hold it for long because it is worn out. The factory is also losing a lot of juice to leakages and worn out machines.”
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