URC boosts milling capacity of Negros sugar plant

Gokongwei-run Universal Robina Corp. (URC) plans to boost the milling capacity of its sugar plant in Kabankalan, Negros Occidental, to 14,000 tons of cane per day from the current 12,000.

The sugar mill is run by Southern Negros Development Corp. (Sonedco), its sugar and renewables subsidiary.

Initially, the mill’s capacity was pegged at just 4,000 tons per day.The mill uses the latest technologies and equipment from Japan, Thailand and India to improve efficiency and energy use.It also started generating its own electricity after building a biomass-fired cogeneration plant that now provides 19 megawatts to the national grid using bagasse, a byproduct of sugar milling, as fuel.In a statement, URC president and CEO Irwin Lee said there was still room to grow for Sonedco, adding, “We hope that with all the resources and support URC is giving, Sonedco will get there.”URC chair Lance Gokongwei said the company “will continue to invest a lot of energy and funds in ensuring that our partner farmers attain the highest productivity and highest income.”

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“We will likewise ensure that our mills are as efficient and as productive as they can be, while investing in facilities for value-added services, such as sugar refineries, biomass energy production and bioethanol and CO2 (carbon dioxide) production,” Gokongwei said.URC, through its sugar manufacturing arm Sugar and Renewables Group, is comprised of two groups: sugar division and distillery division. INQ