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Amuru, Uganda | URN | Atiak Sugar factory plans to resume production towards the end of 2027 or early 2028.
Commissioned in October 2020, the factory suspend production sugar in March 2022 due to shortage of sugarcane from both the plantations in Amuru and Lamwo districts coupled with repeated fire incidents.
The facility is owned by Horyal Investments Holding Company Ltd in partnership with the government which holds a 49 percent share through UDC.
Following a government financial injection of 108 billion shillings, the factory transitioned to mechanized agriculture in late 2023.
That same year, management embarked on sugarcane planting on 4,000 acres using newly acquired irrigation systems, heavy-duty trucks, and tractors to replace manual labor.
Dr Patrick Birungi, the Executive Director of Uganda Development Corporation (UDC) told Uganda Radio Network that the sugarcane planted in 2023 on 4,000 hectares was for the multiplication of seed currently being planted to 4,000 hectares.
“The first plantings were for production of sugarcane. So even when the 4,000 hectares grows, we cut it and plant it again until you have adequate mass to run the factory,” said Dr Birungi.
Th factory has a capacity to crush 1,650 tons of sugarcane per day.
Dr Birungi noted that with the factory’s crush capacity, it would require it to first establish sugarcane on an estimated 20,000 acres before it starts full operation of producing sugar.
“You can’t start (production) until you have adequate mass well arranged knowing that I’m going to cut now, here, tomorrow I’m cutting there, another day I’m cutting there, so that by the time I finish, I’m coming back to cut where I started from so that the factory does not stop operation,” said Dr Birungi.
Adding that “Otherwise, if you have only 4,000 acres, you can’t use it to produce sugar. You can run it for two months and then stop,”
He noted that they project to plant sugarcane on 20,000 acres of land by end of this year which would be enough to run the factory consistently and continuously.
In its bid to minimize dependence on rain and the available four water reservoirs, the management of the factory in October 2024 requested the government for additional funding to install water pipelines from the River Nile to support irrigation for sustainable sugarcane cultivation and sugar production.
Dr Birungi said that while process of the works on the 22 km water pipeline has commenced, the factory still requires more money to fully establish the infrastructure.
He didn’t disclose the amount required for the completion of the works.
Dr Paul Ayella, the Director for Irrigation at Atiak Sugar Factory said that they have so far completed the first and second phase of the irrigation project design that involves the development of an on farm infrastructure and water conveyance system from the farm to the Nile, which the design.
Dr Ayela noted that while the studies and designs are already complete, the factory management is currently on engaging with the local communities on compensation to enable the implementation of the transmission pipelines which will pass through their land.
“The studies are completed and everything is set. But, you know, that transmission passes through people’s land and that is what we are dealing with right now. You cannot hurry. So the compensation, resettlement action plans and signing MOUs on joint use of the infrastructure is what is going on,” said Dr Ayela.
Uganda Radio Network understands that the factory has currently embarked on massive establishment of sugarcane estate with an additional opening of 4,000 hectares of land out of which 2,000 hectares already have seedcanes.
In October 2024, the Leader of Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi expressed concern over the continued government investment in Atiak Sugar despite it being non-operational.
The concerns were raised during a tour of the factory facility by Ssenyonyi and his shadow cabinet members.
The team in the report noted that the factory management had abandoned it’s earlier mode of planting 60,000 acres of sugar cane from Atiak across to Lamwo districts through farmer cooperatives and instead resorted to planting 25,000 acres of sugarcane in Atiak on the land owned by the factory.
To date, the government has invested 553.7 billion Shillings in the project through UDC while Horyal Investment Holding Company Ltd has contributed 164 billion shillings toward the joint venture.
In its bid to minimize dependence on rain and the available four water reservoirs, the management of the factory in October 2024 requested the government for additional funding to install water pipelines from the River Nile to support irrigation for sustainable sugarcane cultivation and sugar
Dr Paul Ayella, the Director for Irrigation at the factory, revealed that they have completed the first and second phase of the irrigation project design that involves the development of an on-farm infrastructure and water conveyance system from the farm to the River Nile.
Dr Ayela noted that while the studies and designs are already complete, the factory management is currently engaging with the local communities on compensation to enable the implementation of the transmission pipelines, which will pass through their land.
“The studies are completed, and everything is set. But, you know, that transmission passes through people’s land, and that is what we are dealing with right now. You cannot hurry. So the compensation, resettlement action plans, and signing MOUs on joint use of the infrastructure are what is going on,” said Dr Ayela.
In October 2024, the Leader of Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, expressed concern over the continued government investment in Atiak Sugar Factory, based in Amuru district, despite it being non-operational. The concerns were raised during a tour of the factory facility by Ssenyonyi and his shadow cabinet members.
The team in the report noted that the factory management had abandoned its earlier mode of planting 60,000 acres of sugar cane from Atiak across to Lamwo districts.
To date, the government has invested 553.7 billion Shillings in the project through UDC, while Horyal Investment Holding Company Ltd has contributed 164 billion Shillings toward the joint venture.
