Nigeria: BUA Group invests USD 300 million in LASUCO, committed to sugar industry development

In line with Nigeria's self-sufficiency, Backward Integration Programme (BIP), in sugar, BUA Group, a leading Foods & Infrastructure Company, said it has invested over USD 300 million in the Lafiagi Sugar Company (LASUCO) in Kwara State, according to a report by Leadership.

While on a facility tour of the company in Lafiagi on Monday Abdul-Rasheed Olayiwola, the senior general manager of LASUCO, said the company is an 'integrated milling factory'.

"LASUCO is an integrated milling factory that is comprised of Sugar mill, Ethanol plant, sugar refinery and power plant that will be integrated into the national grid."

BUA remains committed to the growth and development of the Sugar industry in Nigeria. In line with the Federal Government's Backward Integration Policy (BIP) on sugar and the National Sugar Master Plan (NSMP), pic.twitter.com/ZXIvy4mt73

— BUA Group (@BUAgroup) April 10, 2021

Olayiwola said that the sugar firm stretched over 20,000 hectares is capable of producing over 10,000 tons of cane per day (tcd) with the sugar refinery with a refining capacity of 220,000 metric tonnes.

He said that the company has made heavy investments on the land ever since it took over in 2014 to ensure success of the federal government's self-sufficiency program in sugar.  "BUA group has made over $300million investment so far on this project and when it becomes operational by first quarter of 2021, we will have 5,000 direct staff and over 10,000 indirect staff. We will have farmers, loaders, truckers and other auxiliary services providers who will be basically the locals and other Nigerians. The National Sugar Council of Nigeria (NSCN) has visited the site numerous times and has acknowledged their investment and is looking up to the company to lead the realisation of the sugar master plan of the federal government. They always leave this site fully satisfied that BUA is on course," he added.

He further said that "LASUCO is one of the sites highly rated by the sugar council. They have said Lafiagi is the main BIP project they are looking up to and that no sugar plantation has come near it in the country. LASUCO is an integrated factory that has Sugar mill, Ethanol plant, sugar refinery and power plant that will also be integrated into the national grid for everyone to benefit."

Describing the functioning of the Integrated sugar factory, Olayiwola said that "the Integrated factory will produce 20milion ethanol per annum from the plant, a sugar refinery of 220,000 metric tonnes, a 35 megawatt of electricity for the factory and is to be connected to the national grid for Nigerians to consume and a 10,000 tcd capacity sugar mill. Other sugar refineries have 3000 tonnes of sugar cane per day and this is even brown sugar because they have no equipment to refine to white sugar but ours will be doing 10,000 metric tonnes cane per day."