RAJSHAHI, Aug 20: Rajshahi Sugar Mills Limited, a prominent player in the northern sugar industry, is facing recurring financial losses as it spends Tk 405.68 to produce one kilogram of sugar while selling the widely used sweetener at Tk 100 per kilogram.
The glaring disparity between production costs and sale rates has led to substantial losses amounting to millions of taka over the past few years, said officials.
According to data provided by the mill authorities, in the fiscal year 2017-18, the mill produced 5,448 tonnes of sugar by processing 9,394 tonnes of sugarcane at a cost of Tk 1.08 billion (108 crore).
However, the earnings from sugar sales amounted to only Tk 303.1 million (30.31 crore), resulting in a staggering loss of Tk 744.7 million (74.47 crore) during that season.
The mill's financial woes persisted in subsequent seasons as well: losses of Tk 837.90 million (83.79 crore) in 2018-19, Tk 886.1 million (88.61 crore) in 2019-20, Tk 812.09 million (81.21 crore) in 2020-21, Tk 846.2 million (84.62 crore) in 2021-22 and Tk 636 million (63.6 crore) in the 2022-23 season.
Even in the current season, the mill anticipates incurring losses again, given the production of a mere 356 tonnes of sugar up until August.
Masud Rana, a sugarcane grower in the Katakhali Hazrapukur area of Rajshahi, expressed his disappointment with cultivating sugarcane due to diminishing profits.
Despite increasing production costs, the price of sugarcane has remained stagnant. Escalating expenses related to labour, fertilizers, seeds and pesticides have led farmers like Rana to pivot towards more profitable crops like rice.
Abul Bashar, the managing director of Rajshahi Sugar Mills, highlighted that despite the rise in the price of sugarcane, sugarcane cultivation has notably decreased in the district, primarily due to urbanisation and escalating costs of various inputs, such as fertilizers and pesticides.
Regarding strategies to revitalise sugar mills, Bashar noted that Rajshahi Sugar Mills remains operational mostly during the sugarcane crushing season.
During this period, there exists an opportunity to generate additional revenue by producing and marketing related products, such as mango juice, establishing a distillery, or implementing co-generation methods to produce electricity within the sugar mill.
He said the recommendations have been put forth to the government as potential ways to mitigate losses and ensure the sustainability of the sugar mill, given the available space, workforce and time.
Abul Bashar also said that the mill presently employs a total of 648 individuals, which includes 45 permanent staff members.
Spanning across an area of 229.575 acres, the sugar mill encompasses various facilities, including a residential colony, school grounds, a mosque, medical facilities, a factory, a guest house, a garage, administrative buildings, an organic fertilizer factory, roads and sub-zones.
Within this area, 110 acres are designated for experimental farms, while the remaining 20 acres host subzone offices and sugarcane procurement centres.
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