Sunoko invests EUR 9.4 million in its sugar plants

The oldest domestic sugar factory Backa, which operates as part of the company Sunoko, the biggest domestic manufacturer and exporter of sugar, celebrated Wednesday its 100th birthday in the premises of the factory. Sunoko holds a 51 percent share in the market, which makes it the largest Serbian sugar manufacturer, and over EUR 100 million have been invested since 2003 in the modernization of factories operating as part of its system.

- Vojvodina is one of the most fertile areas for growing sugar beet in Europe, right behind Germany and France. That is why one of the strategic goals of Sunoko is to raise the production of sugar in Serbia to the European level. We plan to invest about EUR 9.4 million in our factories during this year. These investments are meant to boost the processing capacity, reduce production costs, increase the energy efficiency and improve the environment protection. We are proud that MK Group again holds a majority stake in Sunoko since 2010, and I believe that this sugar plant in Vrbas will have such a history that it will live to celebrate its 200th birthday - said Miodrag Kostic, president of MK Group.

According to a release issued by Sunoko, the company has used some favorable opportunities, which has significantly contributed to the growth of both production and exports.

- A total of EUR 2.3 million was invested in the sugar plant Backa in Vrbas this year, a half of which was spent on the construction of a device for filtering the flue gases from boilers, which will significantly contribute to the reduction of the plant's impact on the environment. Besides, Sunoko also invests in its plant in Pecinci, where the construction of a steam kiln worth a total of EUR 9 million has started. This should boost the plant's energy efficiency and completely eliminate harmful gases from that source. According to production plans, the Vrbas sugar plant should process 700,000 tonnes of sugar beet this year to achieve an optimum capacity utilization rate. Sunoko plans to process beet from 33,000 hectares planted with sugar beet and, thus, produce 230,000 tonnes of sugar this year - said Sunoko CEO Ljubisa Radenkovic.