Tongaat Hulett's sugar mills lead South Africa in recovery performance

TONGAAT Hulett's (THL) three South African sugar mills, Maidstone, Amatikulu and Felixton, which benefited from capital investment since the group went into business rescue, have ranked as the top three nationally for sugar recovery in the current sugar milling season.

- EDWARD WEST

The recognition indicates the scale of THL's operational turnaround since entering business rescue in October 2022 - the group said in a statement Thursday its mills were now not only stable, but leading performance across the broader South African sugar sector.

Tongaat Hulett CEO Gavin Dalgleish, together with the Business Rescue Practitioners (BRPs), recently met with grower representatives in a series of engagements. These meetings focused on sharing updates about the company's progress under business rescue, as well as the improvements seen across its milling and refining operations.

The group's three mills, refinery and animal feed plant, which had previously suffered years of under-invest-ment, benefited from a R1.45 billion capital injection over the past three years, secured through the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC).