Ramu to increase sugar production

By MALUM NALU

Ramu Agri Industries Ltd will increase its harvest of sugar to reach a production target of 43,000 tonnes per annum over the next five years.
General manager Jamie Graham said this will meet the demands of the growing PNG market.
The output taget will be predominantly for the growing PNG market as the company does not export its sugar, Graham said.

Cane harvestor (left) and tractor at work in the cane fields of the Ramu Valley last Friday.-Nationalpic by MALUM NALU

He said the  threat of weed and pests has been controlled,  thanks to the company's efficient research and development department headed by national scientist, Dr Lastus Kuniata.
This production will be predominantly for the growing PNG market as the company does not export its sugar.
Last year, RAIL produced about 36,000 tonnes of sugar from a total harvest of 397,000 tonnes.
Graham told The National that the company also planned to extract 3 million litres of ethanol per year from the sugar.
“We’ve got a very good crop in the field (now),” Graham said.
“It would be good to have a bit of dry weather.”
Agriculture manager Paul Lloyd said the company currently had about 7,900ha of sugar plantings at Gusap in the Ramu Valley.
“We divide the estate into seven farms of about 1,300ha,” he said.
“It’s a fully-mechanised operation from land preparation, planting, fertilising, weed control and then harvesting.
“We have a few labourers but this is as advanced as the Queensland sugar industry in terms of mechanism.
“We aim to grow up to 450,000 tonnes of cane a year – this will give us about 40,000 tonnes of sugar.
“We harvest for six months from mid-April to mid-October.
“This corresponds with our dry period.”
Lloyd said the threat of weeds and pests was still there.
“We have a lot of problems and challenges,” he said.
“Weed control is one of the greatest.
“We have a fully-mechanised spraying operation.
“Pest control is another one.
“We have a very-efficient research department.”
Lloyd said natural predators were used to control weeds and aerial spraying was sometimes used to control pests.
RAIL currently has about nine harvesters, 32 large tractors, 62 small tractors, 84 cane bins, and a large seasonal workforce that works in three shifts seven days a week.

Heli Solutions wins K13.7 million deal

By MALUM NALU
Nationally-owned helicopter company Heli Solutions has been awarded a K13.7 million contract by the Electoral Commission to carry out election-related work, The National reports.
Owner James Pima announced this on Saturday night when welcoming seven Australian helicopter pilots who will be flying for Heli Solutions during the election period.
This will be the biggest job for Heli Solutions, which was formed last August and has two helicopters.
The seven pilots flew in on five Squirrel AS350 helicopters from Newcastle and Melbourne in Australia.

Pima (centre) and two of his staff with the seven Australia helicopter pilots who arrived on Saturday night.-Nationalpic by EKAR KEAPU

Pima said because it was a big job that required more helicopters, Heli Solutions signed an agreement with The Helicopter Service Australia to provide an additional five helicopters.
“We have a joint venture agreement with The Helicopter Service Australia to supply us with five helicopters,” he said.
“They’ll be here for the whole polling period.
“This, for Heli Solutions, will be out biggest task to date since being set up last August.
“Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to do it with only two helicopters.”

One of the five Squirrel AS350s touches down on Saturday night.

Pima said the helicopters would serve Morobe, Madang, East Sepik, West Sepik, Gulf, Western, West New Britain and East New Britain provinces.
Luke Davidson, on behalf of the seven Australian pilots, said they were looking forward to the challenge.
“We’re very happy to be here and looking forward to working in the elections,” he said.
Pima, meantime, said business had been so good that Heli Solutions would be looking at acquiring a third helicopter when it celebrates its first anniversary in August.

Ramu expands palm oil farms

By MALUM NALU
Ramu Agri Investments Ltd (RAIL) is carrying out massive multi-million kina expansion of palm oil in Ramu Valley of Madang province and adjoining Markham Valley of Morobe province after having its product rated as among the best in the world.
These projects include the biggest-ever 440km-long irrigation project in PNG using water from the Gusap River, building of satellite towns or “village estates” at Surinam and Dumpu past Gusap in the Usino-Bundi area, a second mill at Dumpu, and getting more out growers from Ramu and Markham valleys.
RAIL general manager Jamie Graham told The National in an exclusive interview in Gusap on Saturday that all these were part of the company’s plan for palm oil expansion after Ramu Sugar was taken over by the giant New Britain Palm Oil Ltd (NBPOL) in 2008.



The massive palm oil storage tanks at Gusap in the Ramu Valley last Friday. The large yellow one can hold up to 1,000 metric tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) while the smaller one can hold 250 metric tonnes of palm kernel oil.-Nationalpic by MALUM NALU

 He did not disclose any figures, however, said these ran into the “millions”.
He said palm oil in 2008 covered an area of 4,500ha and this had increased to 11,000ha since then – largely state leases at Gusap, Surinam and Dumpu – with the company looking at acquiring customary land for expansion.
Seeds come from world-renowned Dami in West New Britain province,
“Our plan over the next five years is to go up to 17,000ha,” Graham said.
“The irrigation project is very important to us.”
He said the irrigation project was necessitated by low rainfall and soil fertility and would be carried out over 620ha to see if it was viable.
“It’s a unique project in many ways,” Graham said.
He said at Surinam and Dumpu, apart from quality housing being built for staff, trade stores, community centres and sporting facilities would also be built.
“We’re also planning a new mill to be located near Dumpu,” Graham said,
“We’ve already started planning.
“We would hope to start by the end of 2013.
“We would hope to have that in operation by the end of 2015.”
The current mill at Gusap, which has been in operation since March 2008, was the first to be established in the Momase region with a capacity of 30 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) per hours.
“We have increased capacity of the mill so that it can produce up to 45 tonnes (per hour) by the end of 2013,” Graham said,
Ramu palm oil is Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)-certified, since 2010, meaning it is internationally-recognised.
“We export straight to Europe,” Graham said,
“We have a bulking terminal in Lae.
“It is then shipped and exported straight to Europe.
He said Ramu palm oil was shipped to NBPOL’s refinery in Liverpool, England, which only processes certified and sustainable palm oil, which goes to show the quality of the product

PNG rum on market soon

By MALUM NALU
PAPUA New Guinea’s first locally made alcoholic drink – Ramu Rum – will be on sale in shop shelves later this year.
This follows the approval of production by PNG Customs to Ramu Agro Industries Ltd, although Ramu Rum has been produced for many years and is given as a gift to local and international VIPs.

Premium Ramu Rum to hit the shelves soon

RAIL general manager Jamie Graham said in Gusap on Saturday that the company already produced very high quality alcohol, which was exported to Australia and Singapore, as well as to local liquor manufacturers such as Fairdeal and Trade Winds.
“We produce alcohol of very high quality,” he said,
“We’re hoping to have that (Ramu Rum) for sale this year.
“Once we get the certificate (from PNG Customs), we can start producing.
“It will be the first spirit produced entirely in the valley from cane grown in the valley, processed in the factory producing molasses, and then used to produce rum.
“Fairdeal and Trade Winds purchase ethanol from us to produce some of their bottles of spirit.
“People are already consuming their products but this (Ramu Rum) will be the proper rum.”
Distillery manager Jisanu Fukatine explained that after after sugar was crystallised the remains, known as molasses, were distilled into 95% alcohol and exported and sold locally.
He said about three million litres of alcohol were produced a year, all of which were sold.
“We’ve been given approval in principal to manufacture and sell rum,” Fukatine said,
“The licence was approved in principle on June 6 by PNG Customs.
“Fairdeal Liquor and Trade Winds buy ethanol from us.
“Papindo uses it to extract vanilla essence.
“We also export to Australia and Singapore.”

O’Neill backs InterOil for Gulf LNG project

Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has reiterated strong support for InterOil's Gulf LNG project and expressed hope that the company will progress its development quickly. “Our government fully supports this second LNG project for the country, and we hope InterOil will develop it as quickly as possible,” he said.

O'Neill...strong support for InterOil

O'Neill said InterOil's Gulf LNG project was an officially-recognised second LNG project for PNG and an agreement for its development with the state had been in place since December 2009.
"I am fully aware that InterOil is committed to developing the project and I urge them to proceed quickly to doing so," O'Neill said.
"I am also fully aware that the company has been deliberate in their desire to secure a recognised LNG development major as a partner for the project in compliance with internationally recognised corporate ethics and protocols.”
He said he was confident the company would stick to the agreement and proceed ahead.
O’Neill was concerned that a number of public statements made recently in the media had the potential to create insecurity and cast aspersions on the corporate standing of genuine long term foreign investors that were committed to investing and doing business in PNG as our development partners.
"InterOil has shown that it is one of those genuine long term foreign investors who have stood by PNG during the hard economic times of the 1990s when others decided to pack up and leave,” he said,
"They have our full support in this project,” he said, and urged officials in the ministry and Department of Petroleum and Energy to assist InterOil proceed as quickly as they could.
"I want to reassure InterOil and the investment community that our government fully supports foreign investment and we are committed to making sure that necessary assistance and facilitation is provided to secure business licenses, registration and other go-forward prerequisites required to conduct investment and business in PNG.”

Border trade control lacking

By MALUM NALU

Border control and enforcement agencies lack resource to control the multi-million kina illicit trade that flourishes in PNG using smuggled items from Indonesia, The National reports.
A Customs source, who asked not to be named, confirmed reports by British American Tobacco in The National that millions of kina worth of illicit goods were being smuggled with ease through the border post at Wutung, West Sepik.

Confiscated contraband being burned by Customs authorities at the border

He said it was ironic that Customs collected K2.3 billion in 2011 fiscal year but the total recurrent allocations for 2012 was only K18 million which was a mere 0.008% of what the organisation collected.
“There are things happening at our borders every day,” the source said.
“The border control and enforcement agencies are under resourced in terms of manpower, logistical support and training.
“Further to that, border enforcement officers are not being properly looked after in terms of housing, good salary, etc.
“Government agencies have very low staff retention rates where well-trained and qualified persons leave and find pastures elsewhere for better working conditions.”
The source said acceptance of bribes by officers was brought by the increasing cost of living.
“An officer is likely to forgo over K20, 000 state revenue at any one instance by accepting less than K200 offer for approval and release of goods or people,” he said.
“The consequential risks attached with allowing such people or goods to enter the country are far more damaging for the people, the legitimate business community and the country in terms of security and revenue for the state.
“Responsible governments must increase funding towards staff welfare, salary/wages for staff and build the resource capabilities so that officers can perform their tasks with professionalism and due care.”
The source could not confirm or deny that K7.2 million in government revenue was lost because of the illegal tobacco trade “as reliable data involved in smuggling activities is not being captured in our database system, especially on unlawful/illegal trades involving goods and people across PNG’s borders”.
BAT said in a document highlighting the seriousness of the problem that a common misconception and a running argument used by perpetrators of illicit trade was that the products were made by a sister company in Indonesia, so it was not counterfeit, and therefore legal.
“For instance, Coca-Cola products are made by the legitimately registered company in Indonesia,” it said.
“In the same vein, Pall Mall products are made by BAT Indonesia.
“This is right, but only the half of it.
“Because despite being owned by the same company, the product will still need to have duty paid on it the minute it enters another country.
“It is still a genuine product.
“But because duty is not paid, it becomes contraband and therefore illegal.”

No store goods for Daru until next week

By MALUM NALU
Daru residents, who have not had any store goods for the last two weeks, may have to wait until next week when new supplies arrive, The National reports.
Steamships Shipping general manager Andy Cummings told The National yesterday that the next planned vessel to Daru, Steel Challenger, was scheduled to load in Port Moresby next Monday and expected to arrive in Daru next Wednesday,
He said the last liner service to Daru was on May 15.
“We also use vessel Agutoi Chief on service to Daru, but unfortunately, this vessel has been under repair for last two weeks,” Cummings said.
“Yesterday (Tuesday), we received a letter from the office of Western Province administrator, explaining that due to severe flooding in South Fly area, food supply to Daru had been disrupted and local supply was running very low due to the increased demand the flooding has caused.
“We were asked whether we could direct vessels for food shipment to Daru as soon as possible.
“As of this morning, we have completed repairs on Agutoi Chief and will endeavor to have her loaded and depart for Daru today.
“Steel Challenger will also load for Daru on about June 18 as planned.
“As a contingency, we are also checking with charters which vessels could be released from contracted services to assist with supply to Daru.”
Daru, meantime, will have a brand-new K10 million wharf trestle in August this year, following the launching of the project on June 1 by PNG Sustainable Development Program (PNGSDP), effectively giving the green lights to contractor Curtain Brothers to start work.

The existing Daru wharf trestle. Once rehabilitated, ships should have no problem loading and unloading at Daru.-Nationalpic by MALUM NALU

The existing Daru wharf was condemned two years ago as the trestle had deteriorated to an extent that it was unsafe to use.
This affected movement of cargoes in and out of Daru significantly, with the flow-on effect on businesses, costs and reliability of coastal shipping.