UPDATE:Simbhaoli eyes Rs 300 cr turnover from imported raw sugar

Simbhaoli Sugars Ltd today said the company will generate an additional turnover of Rs 300 crore from the sale of 1.12 lakh tonnes of imported raw sugar.     

Simbhaoli, which has two fully functional refineries having a capacity of 1,200 tonnes per day in Uttar Pradesh, has already contracted for the supply of 1.12 lakh tonnes of raw sugar, which it will process by October.     

In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company's Director (Finance) Sanjay Tapriya stated that the sale of 1.12 lakh tonnes of imported raw sugar in the domestic market will "translate into an additional turnover of about Rs 300 crore".     

The company hopes to have a profit margin of Rs 3-4 per kg through the sale of imported raw sugar after refining, he said, adding that Simbhaoli would import more raw sugar as it plans to process 2.5 lakh tonnes in the next one year.     

Of the total contracted raw sugar, the company has received 60,000 tonnes and 52,000 tonnes is being shipped.     

"We have already refined and sold 20,000 tonnes of imported raw sugar. The refining process is undergoing even though the season has ended," he said.     

Tapriya said the company is aggressively importing raw sugar for processing as it would not only help the country meet deficit but would increase the business volume of the company.

"Simbhaoli has been one of the first sugar-manufacturing companies to identify the raw import possibilities to meet the current sugar deficit," the company said in a statement.

In April, the government allowed sugar mills to import duty-free raw sugar under open general licence (OGL) in order to step up supplies in the domestic market amid lower sugar production estimates.  Under OGL, mills do not have any export obligation.

Sugar output in the 2008-09 season (October-September) is estimated to be 15 million tonnes, compared with 26.4 million tonnes in the last season.