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Nitol, Thai co team up to run Kaliachapra sugar mill

STAR BUSINESS REPORT
A newly privatised sugar mill has taken a unique commercial strategy to come out of the country's longstanding experience of loss in the state-controlled sector.
When Central Properties Ltd, a subsidiary of Nitol Group, bought the Kaliachapra Sugar Mills through an open tender floated by the Privatisation Commission, the management thought it must find a partner to keep the mill running round the year.
Accordingly, the company forged partnership with Ban Pong Intertrade, Thailand's largest private sector sugar producer, as part of its strategy to keep the mill operational during off-season to make the industry profitable.
The state-run sugar mills usually run their machines three to four months a year due to shortage of crushable sugarcane and remain idle
during rest of the year, which is a major reason for loss in the sector.
Partnering with the Thai company, the owners of Kaliachapra Sugar Mills in Kishoreganj now target to produce about 10,000 metric tons of sugar from local canes in full season in the mill, which stopped production in 1994 due to unavailability of canes.
Besides, the company plans to keep machines busy to produce another 50,000 tonnes of refined sugar from imported 'raw sugar' during offseason.
To implement the unique strategy, Central Properties yesterday signed a partnership deal with Ban Pong Intertrade to form 'Nitol Sugar Industries'.
Central Industries holds 80 percent stake in the new company while the rest 20 percent is owned by the partner Thai company, a subsidiary of Ban Pong Group, one of the Thailand's
largest conglomerates.
"With eight lakh tonnes annual deficit, the country must take new look at the sector and adopt new technology and strategy to minimise the shortfall," Chairman of Nitol Group Abdul Matlub Ahmad said speaking at the agreement signing ceremony.
"As the mill has been closed for a decade farmers in Kishoreganj, Netrakona and Mymensingh have shifted to other crops. So, we'll start with cultivating sugarcane seedlings on 500 acres of land this year. Then we'll go for trial production next season and finally for full capacity operation in 2006," he said.
"With technical assistance from the Thai company, we'll provide the farmers with high quality seedlings, modern method and technology. This will help us double production," he said assuring higher than the government purchase rate for sugarcane.
Speaking at the function, Executive Chairman of Board of Investment Mahmudur Rahman said it is praiseworthy that the buyers of a privatised company are taking new strategy to become profitable. "If divested mills become profitable the government will feel encouraged to speed up the privatisation process."
Vibul Panitvong, chairman of Ban Pong Group, said, "With 50 years experience in sugar business, we hope to contribute to sufficiency in Bangladesh's sugar industry."
Bangladesh’s 14 state-owned sugar mills annually produce around 2 lakh tonnes of sugar against an estimated demand of 10 lakh tonnes.
Kaliachapra Sugar Mills was declared closed in 1994. The Privatisation Commission signed letter of intent with Central Properties Ltd in October 2002 to sell the state-owned enterprise and handed over it in March this year.