Sugarcane growers estimate that exports from the 2013/2014 crop will be reduced by 10% due to the negative effects of climate and oversupply in the global market.
In recent months, a decrease in the price of sugar has been more evident, "... a hundredweight went from being quoted at $24 two years ago, to $19 in March 2013 and now to $15 ... therefore producers have lost between 5% and 10% of their income. "
Sugar millers in El Salvador have announced new investments to increase power generation using waste from sugarcane processing.
Initially mills worked on producing energy for their own consumption, however, in recent years they have generated more energy than they need and they are transferring it to the national grid. One example of the large investments on the horizon for the country can be seen at La Cabaña mill in Paisnal, where $35.5 million was invested for the purchase of machinery and technology to generate 20 MW starting from the 2014-15 harvest.
Energy sales increased from 192.8 GWh in 2009 to 292.8 GWh in 2010.
The three mills which generate energy from sugarcane, the Salvadoran Sugar Company (CASSA), Ingenio El Angel and Ingenio La Cabaña, have managed to cover 2.86% of the total cumulative demand by October 2010, according to data published by Transactions Unit (UT).
"CASSA is the one with a greater capacity for sales.
With close to one million dollars invested, the packing plant was built and equipped at the La Cabaña sugar mill, and was inaugurated last Wednesday.
Roberto Goodall, president of Empaques y Sabores S.A de C.V. (Empaqsa), said to Elsalvador.com: "The infrastructure is the sixth investment by Empagsa, which now has a plant at each of the sugar mills, a task which was started in 2004. The total investment to date totals 3.5 million dollars.