After a several-month break Agara Sugar factory will resume operation from June 1, announces the office of Georgia’s business ombudsman and Agara Sugar company.
It is reported by «Sputnik Georgia».
All employees of the factory will return to their jobs.
The Georgian government and the founders of Agara Sugar company negotiated with the involvement of the business ombudsman’s office. As a result, a support package was developed and with its help the Agara Sugar factory will resume its operations from June 1.
As announced, in order to make the factory ready for resuming operations in June, preparatory works will be carried out in May.
As reported, Agara Sugar suspended operation in November 2017. The factory’s administration claimed the sugar they were producing was no longer competitive amidst growing imports from Europe after the authorities lifted a quota on white sugar imports.
«The growing distribution of white sugar globally resulted in a reduction in prices. Our sugar wasn’t able to compete against imported sugar because unlike the prices, material costs have not dropped and production prices have remained the same for the factory», — a statement from the Agara Sugar company issued on 19 April said.
On April 20 several dozen workers from a sugar factory in the town of Agara marched 110 kilometres to the capital and demonstrated outside the building of Georgia's Government Administration.
Demonstrators from Agara say the factory is the only source of income for the town, and that up to 500 people will be left unemployed if it does not reopen. Protesters had been demonstrating outside the factory for over a month, demanding the government step in to save it.
Thanks to the involvement of the business ombudsman office, negotiations were held between the government and the company representatives. As agreed the factory will be reopened on June 1.